


it's so quiet here...

by tinacita



Category: The White Queen (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-11
Updated: 2015-02-09
Packaged: 2018-02-16 23:21:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 23
Words: 35,890
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2288354
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tinacita/pseuds/tinacita
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>thanks again to annetheseamaiden :)</p>
    </blockquote>





	1. Thanksgiving weekend

**Author's Note:**

> thanks again to annetheseamaiden :)

Richard slowly opened his eyes, and saw the sun peeking through the curtains. He glanced sideways at the clock. 9:30am.

Well, he thought, at least I got about 4 hours of sleep. He closed his eyes again, as he was so exhausted. He reopened his eyes a few minutes later, and looked at her, sound asleep, her head on his chest, her one arm wrapped around him. He smiled, and in the faintest of whisper, said, “Anne.”

She was _the best_ reason that he could he think of for being so tired. He closed his eyes, remembering the events of last night …

They had agreed to meet in the park. As they took a leisurely stroll in the cool autumn air, they talked. In truth, Anne did most of the talking, telling him about her family, and her new place. Richard then suggested they go the market to grab something to make for dinner. Anne had laughed, as she was only good at making salads and sandwiches. Richard was only a marginally better cook, so he bought some pasta, tomatoes and garlic for the sauce, and a nice loaf of fresh bread.

They went to his house, made dinner, and ate, still talking. Richard liked talking with her. She was smart, insightful and witty. After they cleaned up, Anne asked Richard to give her “the grand tour.” He had laughed heartily, as his house was fairly small and very ordinary. She had commented on all the photos in the living room, and listened eagerly as Richard told her about his rather large family. Anne had been impressed by his “office” -- it was a super tiny room stacked with piles and piles of books. Her favorite spot, though, was the backyard. She liked how peaceful and quiet was. It had an old time wooden bench swing, which is where the tour ended.

They were still sitting outside on the swing when the stars began to appear in the evening sky. Anne had her arms around Richard, with her head resting on his shoulder. He was enjoying just sitting there, with her in his arms.

“Richard?” she said, looking up at him. “Hmm …” he replied, looking down at her.

They stared into each other’s eyes for a moment, and then it all exploded. As they kissed, Richard could feel a passion equal to his own. As he pulled away, nearly as breathless as Anne was, he stood up, took her hand, and led her back inside the house.

They were barely through the doorway when they started undressing each other. By the time they reached his bedroom, they were nearly naked. He had been a bit surprised that Anne’s intensity had matched his.

As they approached the bed, he stopped her. Anne looked confused. Richard smiled at her as he slowly removed the last of her clothes. She laughed a little, and then did the same to him before lying on the bed.

He gazed upon her lovely body, thinking about had long he’d waited for this moment, not realizing that she was harboring the same thoughts. He slowly climbed on to the bed, into her outstretched arms.

“Richard,” she sighed, as he started to kiss her. He had every intention of being slow and gentle with her, but once he touched her soft skin, and she was running her hands slowly up and down his back, he couldn’t stop himself. He kissed every inch of her, enjoying the sweet taste of her skin. And as Anne’s hands explored his body, Richard felt his heart pounding faster in his chest.

Again, Anne’s passion equaled his own. She drew him closer, and cried out his name in ecstasy shortly before him.

Richard was barely able to keep himself from collapsing on top of her. As he rolled on to his side, Anne immediately curled right up next to him, laying her head on his chest. She sighed, and said, “Do you have any idea how long I’ve been thinking about that?” Richard smiled, rubbing her shoulders, and said, “Probably as long as I have.”

They fell asleep that way, but kept waking each other during the night to indulge their desires.

Richard was so deep in thought that he didn’t feel Anne waking up. Nor did he realize that thinking about them making love all night had aroused him once again.

Suddenly, Richard gasped, as he felt Anne gently massaging him. “Were you dreaming about us?” Anne asked playfully. Richard looked at her, and smiling lustfully, said, “What do you think?”

He moaned softly as she climbed on top of him. As much as he liked being in control, over most aspects of his life, Richard thoroughly enjoyed her on top of him. He liked seeing the pleasure build on her face, and he loved her soft hands on his chest. What he didn’t yet know was how much she enjoyed him watching her, and touching her all over …

She collapsed onto his chest, utterly satisfied and equally as exhausted. She pulled the blankets over them, and kissed his chest. As Richard rubbed her back, she sighed contentedly, and mustering all her courage, she looked up at him and said, “Richard … I … I think I’m falling in love with you.” He looked down at her, and said smiling, “I already _AM_ in love with you, Anne.”

As they fell asleep, he began to think about how all of this started …


	2. late august -- part 1

As Anne relaxed in the window seat in her little library, she was pretty excited. She was starting her senior year at university, and everything was finally falling into place. She began to think about the last year and a half, and how it had been a nightmare, both scholastically and personally…

Her family was fairly wealthy, but her father had decided, somewhat suddenly, that Anne should pay for her tuition by herself.

“But why now?” Anne had asked her father. “You keep paying for Isabel’s education, and she just keeps dropping out!” Her father merely shook his head, said, “No more.”

She had hoped that maybe her mom would help her, but she had sided with her husband. “You are far too dependent on us,” her mother said.

So she had applied for loans and grants, and everything was in order, or so she was told. Something happened during all the processes, and she only received half of the money she was promised. To maintain her full time status, she withdraw a large chunk of her inheritance, much to her father’s dismay, and took 2 part time jobs to pay for her books and tuition. She worked as a private tutor, and also in the university library. The jobs weren’t making her rich, but she enjoyed them both very much. The only thing she didn’t like was how much time she spent working, and not studying. At least her father still paid for her apartment and food, so she was not in a bad way.

There was also Isabel. Anne was the younger daughter, and definitely the more mature one. Her older sister was the complete opposite. She had started at university, but then dropped out to be a model. When that fell through, she returned home to her parents, and started at a different university. She dropped out again to pursue the stage. She returned home a second time after she had no success. Their father was becoming quite annoyed, so he threatened to disown Isabel. The only person Isabel turned to was her. So she would call Anne late at night, randomly show up at her apartment, and interrupt her while she trying to study, complaining about her life, or how mean their father was because he refused to give her any more money. Isabel finally started at a third university, majoring in fashion. Apparently her 2 previous failed careers helped her in some way, because she now works for a fashion house, and “thankfully,” Anne thought, “she doesn’t bother me as much!”

Then there was _the ex-boyfriend_. She shook her head and sighed. “How could I have been so clueless?” she asked herself, yet again. He was the biggest reason why her life had train wrecked.

When Anne had met Eduard, he seemed like a nice, stable, decent guy. He was vaguely handsome, on the dean’s list, popular, and came from a similarly affluent family. They didn’t have a lot in common, but she found that interesting. She had even thought that he might be “the one.” Their relationship had started out just fine, and she believed that she was falling in love with him. But Veronica and her father hadn’t liked him. Anne told them they were overreacting, and not giving him a chance.

Boy, had she been wrong! He had been utterly unsupportive during the whole tuition fiasco, made fun of her jobs, and, to make matters worse, he took every opportunity to demean her. She recalled some of the things he called her: whining, immature, stupid, needy, plain, lazy, self-centered … truly, he was describing himself!

Anne shuddered as she remembered when he’d gotten rough with her. She attributed that first night to how drunk he had gotten at the frat party, but unfortunately, that was only the beginning. Those nights became more frequent and increasingly scarier. She remembered in horror how bad the last night was and how she had run out of his apartment, large kitchen knife in hand, to her sister’s, seeking refuge. Despite her pleas, Isabel told their parents, and the authorities became involved, turning it into a long and torturous ordeal.

To add insult to injury, all of these things – the money issues, the 2 jobs, her sister, _HIM_ – had caused her grades to drop, making her father even more disappointed in her. “That was a fun conversation,” she thought sarcastically. Luckily, she was in good standing with 2 of her professors and they allowed her to do massive amounts of extra work, which helped restore her grades to nearly the level they had been at before all of this had occurred.

Her father had been impressed by her tireless efforts to get back on track, and paid for Anne to attend summer session at the university. In doing so, she completed the last of her university requirements, and she was able to register for just her core classes for the upcoming fall semestre.

She was a history major, focusing on the medieval eras. When she was younger, every summer had been spent traveling through Europe with her family. She had been fascinated by all the castles and old buildings, and the stories and legends associated with them. Anne had been equally intrigued by the peoples of these times, and decided that she wanted to study history, and become a teacher or professor. She even contemplated writing a book about those eras and her travels.

So, Anne had every reason to be excited about the start of the fall semestre, and her senior year.

She had also moved into this “new” place with her best friend Veronica. It was a small, old house, with a great deal of charm, and a tiny library. That had been the major selling point for her. It was tucked away in the back corner of the house, and had a serene quality to it. Plus, there was a little yard and garden, which suited her dear friend as much as the library suited her. Anne’s father was also pleased by this, as it was further away from campus, in a better neighborhood, and, as he put it, “a much better environment for an aspiring academic.”

Veronica quietly entered the library, and saw Anne gazing out the window. She smiled, knowing how much Anne already adored this little room.

“What are we daydreaming about now?” asked Veronica.

Anne looked over from her place on the window seat. “I’m really excited about my classes this semestre. The only one that worries me is my class on the war of the roses. I’ve got ‘the old man,’ and from what I’ve heard about him, I may be spending what little free time I have studying for this one class,” Anne said.

“They call him ‘the old man?’ Seems kind of disrespectful. And why are you worried? That’s one of your favorite subjects!” Veronica said, looking curiously at her best friend.

“Well,” Anne said, “He is rather old. But he’s insanely smart. He’s English, and this is his area of expertise. He teaches a lot of material, which he expects you to know as well as he does, plus he’s super picky about everything. I’ve heard that he finds obscure details in the 6 required textbooks, and makes up questions about them on the tests. They said he’s awesome, but a terror, too.”

Veronica sat down in the old leather chair and laughed. “Only you would choose this class willingly then get all worked up about it.”

Anne giggled, turned to her friend, and said, “I know. But I worked SO hard to bring my GPA back up and I really want to graduate with honors. I’ve also heard that he writes amazing grad school recommendations. So if I do well, maybe I can convince him to write one for me. I’d love to go to school in England, or anywhere in Europe, and study this first hand. Wouldn’t that be spectacular?! You could study architecture there, and we’d have a blast!”

Veronica got up, walked over to the window, and hugged Anne. “You are too funny! Come on. Let’s go make a nice dinner before we revert to our bad eating habits for the semestre!”

Anne got up, too, and the two friends walked into the cozy little kitchen. Veronica kept laughing at her, because as hard as Anne tried to put “the old man” and his class out of her mind, she just couldn’t.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> anne's one dilemma was inspired by the plight of a friend, and "the old man" is based upon an art history professor that i had as an undergrad.


	3. late august -- part 2

Richard was working in his tiny office when his phone rang. “Yes, Francis?” he said to his best friend.

“Hello to you too. You busy?” Francis said, from Richard’s front porch.

“I’m working on the syllabus for my classes. Then I’m going to plan the 1st few lessons. Why?” Richard replied.

Francis shook his head. The man was such an overachiever! “Open the door. I brought us a pizza, since I was almost positive that you’ve been working all day and hadn’t eaten.”

Richard hung up the phone, sighed, and walked to the front door. “Extra cheese, sausage, onions, and pepperoni. Plus I got cheesy breadsticks, and chocolate chips cookies for dessert!” Francis said cheerfully as he strolled through the door.

Richard had to laugh. His best friend was always bringing him food. Good thing, too, as he realized he hadn’t eaten since breakfast this morning.

Richard joined Francis in the kitchen, got the plates, and grabbed a few sodas from the fridge. “Thanks,” Richard said, “I’ve been trying to prepare as much as possible.”

“You kill me!” Francis shouted. “Why are so worried? They’re only introductory courses!”

As Richard began to tediously explain to his best friend why he was so concerned, Francis was grateful that he was back to his old self, given the rough year that Richard had …

His best friend, Richard York, was _THE_ man. He was handsome, with piercing green eyes, dark hair, and a smile that made every woman melt. He was a genuinely good guy, honest, hard-working, and motivated.

And he was incredibly intelligent. He had received his bachelor’s degree in history in 3 years, and his 1st master’s degree in only 3 semestres. He had just finished his 2nd master’s degree, and was already halfway done with his doctoral studies. Richard would already be preparing for his dissertation had it not been for _her – Kate_. He’d met her in grad school, and they had what Francis could only describe as a disaster of a relationship.

It had started very quickly, and she mentioned after about 3 months that she would love to get married. Francis tried to explain to Richard that he didn’t know her well enough and that he wanted to finish his doctorate first – a whirlwind romance and wedding were not in his plans. But his friend wouldn’t listen, so he decided to propose. That’s when the “real Kate” was revealed. She refused Richard the 1st time because the ring was too small. Then he had to plan their engagement party 3 times because it wasn’t grand enough for her. Richard’s brother Edmund didn’t like her either, and was also trying to convince him that Kate was not the one for him. Richard was so angry with his brother that he stopped talking to him.

But it was what happened five months ago that changed everything. He’d asked her to finally decide on a date for their wedding. She had said next month. Richard was more than a little shocked, and when he calmed down and asked her why so soon, she told Richard that she was pregnant and couldn’t wait any longer than that. It was the moment that changed Richard. They’d been having sex for some time, but he always wore a condom. He didn’t want an unplanned pregnancy to derail his plans. Richard was so angry that he ripped the ring off her finger, grabbed her purse, and physically threw her out of their apartment.

Richard couldn’t believe what had happened. He had been sucked in by her looks and her talents in bed. He’d changed – he’d yelled at her and been a little violent. He had lost himself, and he didn’t listen when his best friend and family had told him that she was no good. Now everything was a mess. He became withdrawn, unmotivated, antisocial, and mean – Francis contemplated taking him to a hospital or putting him in a treatment program.

What brought Richard back was Edmund. They had always been close, but that changed when Richard met Kate. He was distraught to see his little brother in such a state. So he did what had to be done. Edmund literally beat the sense back into Richard. Francis had wanted to take him to the hospital, but Edmund was a doctor, so he nursed his little brother back to health.

But unfortunately, Richard lost a whole semestre of work, and had also been put on academic probation, as he’d neglected his duties as a teaching assistant during this time as well. But Richard, being who he was, managed to reclaim his good academic standing and reputation, and was back on his original path…

Edmund had also decided that Richard needed a change of scenery. So he found a small house for Richard. Richard had been against it at first.

“What do I need a house for? It’s just me! I can live in another apartment,” Richard argued.

“Absolutely not! You’ve spent enough time living in the city. You always loved our big country house, so I found you a smaller version. It’s perfect for you,” Edmund replied.

When Richard saw the place, he had to admit that he’d been wrong. As they walked through the house, he started thinking out loud. “The kitchen has all new appliances, the living room is really big, I like the backyard, and that little room in the front would make a nice office …” Edmund knew then that his little brother would be ok.

So Edmund cosigned the loan, and Richard moved in. Francis had been his first visitor, and turned out to be his most frequent.

“Francis? Francis!!” Richard yelled. “Huh?” said Francis, coming out of his thoughts. “Nice. My best friend can’t even listen to me when I need him,” snickered Richard.

“I was paying attention. You’re a highly motivated man who likes to be prepared and you’re worried because this is your first venture into being the professional that you want to become,” replied Francis, very convincingly.

“Uh-huh,” said Richard, not buying that rehearsed reply. “You’re lucky you feed me, or I’d kick you out.”

Francis laughed, and said, “You’re more than my best friend. You’re like my brother. I care about. I worry about you. I have to, because you are SO focused on your career.”

Richard looked him, and knew he was right. Richard had always been very career oriented, even more so since the whole incident with HER. He shuddered at the very thought of her.

“Stop worrying. You wouldn’t have this opportunity if you didn’t deserve it and if they didn’t think that you could do it,” Francis reassured his friend.

“I know, but …” Richard said, sounding very unsure.

“Listen. The only person who knows you better than I do is Edmund, and I know he agrees with me. You are smarter than some of the professors in your department. You can handle this. You know what I always tell you …” Francis said.

“Yes, I know … I’m the man,” Richard said.

“And that is the honest truth, and you know it!” Francis replied.

“All right! Enough already!” Richard said as he got up from the table. “I give up!”

“Relax, man! I’ll help you clean up, and then I’ll let you get back to work. But you have to promise to call me tomorrow. We’ll meet up for lunch or dinner,” Francis said.

“Ok,” Richard responded, as they cleaned up their mess.

As Francis walked toward the door, Richard said, “Thanks.” Francis turned and smiled at his friend. “No worries, right?”

“Right! I’ll talk to you tomorrow!” Richard said as Francis left.

He stared at the door for a moment. Francis was right, about a lot of things. But as Richard walked back to his office, he said, amused, “I am so NOT the man!” He sat back down at his desk, opened up his laptop, and despite Francis’s reassurances, continued to worry while he worked.


	4. sunday night -- part 1

Richard was very concerned. He had just got off the phone with the dean. It was Sunday, and the fall semestre was starting tomorrow.

He was mostly prepared for his courses, and he was also going to be assistant to his favorite professor, mentor, and in truth, his friend, Dr. Clarence. “The old man,” as he was called by both faculty and students alike, was a brilliant historian, with an equal amount of passion for teaching. He was the kind of professor that Richard aspired to be.

The dean had sounded bad on the phone, especially when he asked if Richard could him to his home as soon as possible this evening.

Richard was on his way out the door when his phone rang again. “I can’t talk now Francis,” Richard said in a harried voice.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, worried about his friend.

“The dean just called me, and I’m on my way to see him,” Richard replied, walking down the sidewalk.

“Why did he call you? Is it about your dissertation?” Francis asked, still a bit concerned.

“I don’t know. He just said that he needed to see me. I’ll call you on my way back and we’ll have a drink, ok?” Richard asked as he got into his car. “Ok. Try not to worry too much,” Francis said as Richard hung up.

As Richard drove to the dean’s house, he couldn’t help but be confused. The dean wasn’t part of his advisory team, and truthfully, he’d only met the man twice. He certainly wasn’t prepared for what was about to happen.

Richard rang the doorbell, and smiled nervously as the dean answered the door. “Mr. York. Thank you for coming so quickly. Please, come in,” said the dean.

Richard followed him into the study, and smiled at the woman who had just set down a pitcher of iced tea with 2 glasses.

She smiled pleasantly, saying, “Hello. I’ll leave you to your business. And it should be quieter now – I took the girls downstairs.” The dean smiled, replying, “Thank you honey.”

“My daughter is having an end-of-the-summer sleepover. Ten 13 year old girls is about 9 too many for me!” chuckled the dean. Richard smiled, and said, “I have sisters, so I completely understand.”

“I know you must be wondering why you’re here,” said the dean, gesturing for Richard to sit down, and offering him a glass of iced tea.

“Thank you, yes,” said Richard. “Does this have something to with my academic status, or my dissertation?”

“On the contrary,” replied the dean. “I’ve been most impressed with your return to form, as it were. We all were. And that is why you’re here.”

Richard was now even more confused. And he was having a hard time trying to control the fear which was threatening to consume him.

“I received a phone call yesterday from Dr. Clarence’s nephew. Have you met him?” asked the dean.

“No,” replied Richard, “but he spoke of his nephew often. They’re very close.”

The dean looked down at his glass and sighed. “Yes. His nephew knew a great deal about you, though. Apparently, Dr. Clarence spoke about you frequently, praising you in all sorts of ways. He told his nephew that he hoped you would succeed him in the department when he retired.”

Richard was rendered speechless by the dean’s remarks. He knew that “the old man” had been fond of him, but to take his place? Wow!

“Sadly, you’re going to get that chance sooner than any of us expected,” said the dean, looking rather distraught.

“I’m sorry, I don’t understand,” said Richard, suddenly feeling terrified.

“Dr. Clarence had a stroke last week. He’s in a coma. His doctors aren’t sure if when he’ll recover. I realize this must be quite a shock, and I’m afraid I’m about to make it worse. I need you to teach 2 of his classes – the modern British monarchy, and the war of the roses.”

The dean was right – Richard was utterly stunned. How could Dr. Clarence have suffered a serious stroke?! And now to be asked to teach his classes? Richard’s brain was having a hard time processing all of this.

“Mr. York?” asked the dean. “Are you all right?” Richard stared at him, but could only manage to nod.

“I know you’re teaching 2 introductory courses, and I still need you to do that. But what I need to know, honestly and quickly I’m afraid, is if you can handle teaching these 2 upper level courses. I believe that you can, as does the rest of the department. They gave you their endorsements when I spoke with them earlier.”

Richard just looked at the dean. This was part of his master plan – teaching these kinds of classes at a reputable university. But he never expected to get the chance to so do this soon, or at the expense of his ill mentor. He took a deep breath before speaking.

“I am flattered that everyone has such faith in me, especially Dr. Clarence. I am devastated by this news, but I give you my word – I will do the very best that I can. I will prove that your faith in me is justified,” said Richard, as calmly as he could.

“Excellent!” cried the dean. “I knew that I made the right decision. Your salary will be adjusted as such. There is just one more thing. Since you’re assuming extra responsibilities, I’d like you to have an actual office. However,” paused the dean, causing Richard to become anxious again, “the only available one is Dr. Clarence’s. Can you handle that?”

Richard sighed sadly. He loved that office. He spent a lot of time there, seeking counsel, studying, or just spending time with “the old man.” Dr. Clarence had even given him a key, telling him he could use the office any time he wanted, especially if he was looking for a quiet place.

Richard looked at the dean, and said, “It would be an honour to use his office. And I won’t touch anything.”

The dean smiled weakly. He knew the likelihood of Dr. Clarence recovering was nearly non-existent. The dean then remembered what “the old man” had told him before leaving at the end of the spring semestre – Richard York must take his place, no matter what. It had seemed somewhat premature then, but now …

“I’ll have my secretary email you his previous syllabi, along with the other documents, and faculty schedules. I understand this is sort of a baptism by fire, but I have the utmost confidence in you,” said the dean, standing up.

“I won’t let you down, sir,” Richard said, shaking the dean’s hand. “I know you won’t, Mr. York.”

They walked to the door, and Richard stopped to shake the dean’s hand again, and thanked him, before leaving. As Richard walked back to his car in a daze, he tried to process all that had just transpired…


	5. sunday night -- part 2

As Richard drove back to his place in a daze, he did manage to remember that there was very little in the way of refreshments for him and Francis. So he stopped at the local market, bought some snacks, stuff to make sandwiches, and a 6 pack of beer. As he was waiting in the checkout line, he texted Francis. “I’m on my way. Be there in about 15.”

As he walked back to his car, he couldn’t help but think about what just happened. He was basically just handed his dream. “The old man” had always told him he’d be a great professor someday, and Richard’s reply was always that he had such a great mentor. He still couldn’t believe that Dr. Clarence was so ill. It broke his heart to think about it.

Francis was waiting on the front porch when Richard pulled up. He grabbed the groceries out of the back seat and threw Francis his keys so he could open the door.

“I’m flattered that you got such gourmet snacks for us!” chuckled Francis as he followed Richard into the kitchen.

“Yeah, well, there was basically nothing, and I sort of forgot about it,” Richard said sullenly, putting the beer in the freezer to keep it cold.

“So what did the dean want? Is everything ok with your status? Was it about your dissertation?” Francis asked in rapid succession.

Richard looked at friend and managed a weak laugh. He was going to make a great attorney. The witnesses wouldn’t stand a chance with Francis questioning them.

“To make a long story short …” Richard started to say before Francis interrupted him. “Yeah! Right! That is not one of your many talents!”

“May I please continue?” Richard asked wearily. Francis nodded as the smile faded from his face, and Richard said, “Dr. Clarence is seriously ill and I am taking his place.”

Francis just stared at his friend for a few moments. Richard was not one to make jokes, especially about something like this. But he couldn’t tell if he was totally serious either, given how absurd it sounded. Richard was super smart, but to be given such responsibilities without yet having his doctorate was a bit strange.

“You’re serious, aren’t you?” Francis finally asked. “Yep! Mind blowing, eh? Richard replied. “That’s an understatement,” said Francis, still a little stunned. “I think I really need to hear the whole story,” said Francis, sitting down at the kitchen table as Richard brought the sandwich stuff and chips over.

“I knew you would,” Richard said dryly, as he went to get the beer.

After he told Francis the whole story, Richard sat back and waited for his friend’s reaction. And it was just as Richard had expected.

“DAMN!” cried Francis. “That’s unbelievable! Did you know any of this?” Richard replied, “Honestly, I knew ‘the old man’ was fond of me, but I never imagined that he felt this way.” Francis then asked, “So how do you feel? And are you really ready for all of this?”

Richard thought for a moment, and then answered, “I’m excited, scared, sad, and elated all at the same time. And I have to be ready – I gave the dean my word.”

Francis smiled, as he knew that Richard’s word was very important to him. “You’ll do an amazing job! And once you get your doctorate, they’ll make it official!”

Richard got up to clear the dishes, and gave his friend a pat on the back. “Thanks. But one step at a time. I have a lot to do before Tuesday.”

“If I can help, please ask ok? I know you. You’ll struggle and suffer miserably before you’ll ask anyone for anything,” Francis said, knowing how true his statement really was.

“I promise,” Richard said, looking his best friend in the eye, “I will ask for your help.”

“Give me a call when you’re done with your classes tomorrow. Have a great 1st day, Professor York!” shouted Francis as he left.

Richard walked into his little office, and sat down at the desk. He was more than a little scared. He had never really been responsible for an entire course, let alone 4. Plus, these extra 2 were Dr. Clarence’s signature courses, and 2 of his own favorites. He took a deep breath, and said out loud to the empty room, “I gave them my word. I will do this to the very best of my abilities. I will not let them down…”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Veronica had made most of the meal, while Anne set the table and made the salad. Her dear friend was such a good cook, and truly enjoyed it. Sadly, Anne was not nearly as talented.

As they sat down to eat, Veronica asked, “I still can’t believe we’re starting our senior year! I’m worried about what kinds of projects I’m going to have to do.”

Anne smiled, always impressed by how talented Veronica was. She would be a great architect someday, and Anne took every opportunity to encourage her. “You know very well that you can handle whatever they throw at you. They love your creativity, and how well you’re able to blend different styles. No worries, ok?”

Veronica laughed at Anne. She was equally smart, but Anne never quite had the same confidence in herself, especially after the whole Eduard debacle. That had affected Anne more than anyone thought, including her. Still, she was grateful for Anne’s constant support.

“I won’t worry if you stop being so anxious about that war of the roses class. You’ve already got the lowdown on the professor, and it’s a subject that interests you, so you’ll have no problems either. And if you need extra time to study, I’ll do more around the house so you don’t have to!” said Veronica in an equally supportive tone.

“Actually, the housework is a good study break, so my brain doesn’t get any more fried than it already is!” Anne chuckled. “Besides, I’d feel even worse if you did any more around here.”

Veronica stood and hugged her still seated friend. “Don’t you worry! We’ll both be fine!”

Anne got up, hugged her back, and started on the cleanup. “Maybe we can meet up for lunch tomorrow. I’m done with class at 1245.”

Veronica started watering her plants, and answered, “I can meet you then. I don’t have to be in the studio until 2. That’s when we get the 1st of our 2 projects for this semestre.”

“Sweet! How about we meet the café in the east quad?” asked Anne, as she finished loading the dishwasher. “Sounds great! Now, let’s relax outside for a bit before we get ready for the start of a great semestre tomorrow!” Veronica said, as she walked towards the yard.

As Anne sat down in the grass and looked up at the first stars of the evening, she could only hope that this semestre turned out to be a good one …


	6. the first class

Anne had been happy after the 1st day of classes. Her 3 classes on Monday had gone well, and she knew a few people in each class, which always made her feel better.

Her class this morning was ok. She thought the professor was pretty arrogant, but she supposed that might be normal, given that the man had 2 doctorates!

She decided to go the history department after her 1st class to see who her advisor would be. She got an email saying that everyone would be getting a new advisor this semester. Anne was glad, because she hadn’t gotten along with her previous one.

As she was waiting in the office, she heard some shouting coming from the graduate assistants’ office down the hall. Anne turned, and saw a dark haired guy leaving the office. She smiled, and sighed.

“Miss Neville?” the secretary said. “Yes?” replied Anne, turning her attention back to the matter at hand. “I’m sorry, but the dean told me that the advising schedules aren’t finished yet. It’ll be another week or so. If it’s something urgent, I can see if the dean will speak with you.”

“No. I was just wondering who it was going to be, given that I didn’t have much luck with my last one,” Anne said.

The secretary smiled, saying, “As soon as I get them, I’ll email you first.”

Anne returned the smile, and thanked her. She checked her watch and decided to go downstairs to her class early. She remembered what she’d heard about the class – arrive early, sit in the middle, and participate.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Richard was very nervous, much more than yesterday. His introductory courses had gone very well. The 1st of Dr. Clarence’s classes, the modern British monarchy, had gone equally well this morning. The students were rather shocked that “the old man” had taken a sabbatical – that was what the dean advised Richard to tell anyone that asked. Nonetheless, he still felt a little nervous.

Richard had gone to the graduate assistants’ office after his class to get the rest of the things from his cubicle. The others had cheered loudly when they found out why he was moving.

As he was leaving though, the anxiety began to return. Richard dropped his things off in Dr. Clarence’s office – HIS office, he reminded himself yet again – and took a few minutes to calm down, relishing the quietness. He then decided to go downstairs to the classroom, hoping to remain calm.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Anne was a little surprised when she entered the room. It was already half full and there were still 10 minutes before the class actually began. She found a seat in the middle, slightly to the left. She tried to say hi to the others, all guys no less, but they seemed content in their own little worlds.

With about 5 minutes remaining, another girl entered the class. Every single guy stopped to look at her. She was tall, thin and had this gorgeous red hair. She smiled at them, all of them, and sat down next to Anne.

“Hi!” she said, “I’m Jane. Looks like it’s just you and me, eh?”

“I’m Anne. Nice to meet you.”

“So,” Jane said, ignoring the lustful glances from the guys in the room, “I heard ‘the old man’ is pretty tough. Would you like to study together?”

There was a chorus of “YES!” from the surrounding guys, which Jane ignored, and looked at Anne. Not wanting to seem ungrateful, or intimidated, Anne replied, “Sure. We can swap schedules after class if you want.”

“Great!” Jane replied, and then suddenly gasped.

Anne turned toward the door to see the dark haired guy from upstairs enter the room.

As she watched him go to the desk, she thought that he must be Dr. Clarence’s teaching assistant. Just then, Jane grabbed her arm.

“WOW!” she said in a hushed tone. “He is studly! Don’t you just want to pull him into a closet and jump him?!”

Anne wasn’t willing to admit that he WAS extremely handsome, so she shrugged her shoulders, and said, “He’s all right, I guess. He’s so serious looking.”

Jane giggled, saying, “Don’t you know? They’re the most deadly!”

Anne shook her head as she looked her phone. It was time for class to start, but “the old man” still wasn’t there.

While the 2 girls were whispering, Richard was preparing his notes and the handouts. He witnessed how all the guys were staring at the redhead, but it was the other girl that he noticed. This should be interesting, he thought amusedly.

He took one final deep breath, and walked over to shut the door.

“Good afternoon. I’m Professor York, and welcome to the war of the roses.” A hint of a smile formed on his lips as he saw the confusion on the faces in front of him. He wasn’t surprised when the redhead asked the obvious question.

“Dr. Clarence has taken a sabbatical. I was a student of his, and a portion of my doctoral dissertation deals with this very subject. I will, however, be following Dr. Clarence’s syllabus, so you will learn everything that he would teach,” Richard said calmly.

He watched as the students nodded, and accepted this, with a great deal of relief. He did notice a small smile on the face of the other young woman in the class. What surprised him, though, was how that small smile was increasing his anxiety.

Anne smiled at him again as he handed out the information packets. She laughed to herself as she watched Jane’s eyes follow him around the room. Not very subtle, Anne thought.

Richard returned to his desk, and said, “You know a little about me, so now I want to know about you. We’ll go around the room. Please say your name, your major, and why you chose this class.”

He unsuccessfully tried not to smile as the students groaned. He sympathized with them – “the old man” had made him do this, in EVERY class they had together. But it was a good tool to learn who everyone was, and what they were like.

Richard started at the back, just as Dr. Clarence had always done. One by one they spoke, with Richard making a few notes on his class list.

And then it was HER turn. “Anne Neville,” she said, looking directly at him. “I’m a history major, this is my senior year, and I’m focusing on the medieval eras.”

As he nodded at her, Anne did her best to keep looking up. She hated doing stuff like that, but she didn’t want to appear timid or unintelligent.

Once he moved on to Jane, she let out a long, quiet breath. She had been relieved to learn that he was replacing “the old man,” but there was something else that was making her nervous. So she tried focusing on her fellow classmates’ introductions.

When everyone was finished, Richard began teaching the first lesson. He maintained eye contact with the whole group, but he kept glancing back to the right, where the girls were seated.

Anne didn’t notice his glances in their direction, as she was concentrating on listening to the lecture and taking notes. She did, however, think that he was very smart, and that the class was still going to be quite a challenge.

After he assigned the homework for the next class, the others left, rather quickly. Richard was packing up his things when he heard his name.

“Professor York?” It was Jane, the redhead. “Yes?” he answered.

She walked slowly and flirtatiously up to his desk, she asked, “Would you like us to bring all the books to class? Or just the ones that you assign the readings in?” She was looking directly at him, smiling, waiting for his response.

“That’s up to you. If you feel that you may want to quote something during a discussion, then maybe you want to bring that particular book,” Richard replied as he continued to organize his papers.

“Thank you,” she said, and then turned back to Anne. “I’ll email you my schedule Anne. Then we can decide on a study time. Ciao!”

Richard shook his head slightly as the redhead left. He was anxious again, and he didn’t really know why. He glanced up and saw Anne putting her things in her bag. He looked down quickly as she looked up.

“Have a good afternoon, Professor,” she said as she was walking past his desk to leave.

Richard looked her, and replied, “Thank you, Miss Neville. You also.” “Thanks,” she answered, and left.

Richard just stood there, and intently watched her leave.


	7. september -- part 1

As the semestre progressed into September, things didn’t get any better with the war of the roses class.Richard was still anxious before AND during every class. His others were fine. He felt as if he’d been teaching them forever. But something wasn’t right with this one, and he couldn’t figure it out.

Richard was sitting in the classroom, his head in his hands, waiting for the students to arrive, contemplating this. In truth, he did have SOME idea about what the problem was, but he was unwilling to even consider it.

He sighed as the door opened, looked up, and nearly stopped breathing. It was HER – and she was almost 20 minutes early. _This is NOT good_ , he thought as he felt the tension rise in his entire body.

Anne had been feeling similarly as she entered the room, and stopped as she saw HIM, already sitting at the desk. She had been hoping to sort out her own anxieties, but she couldn’t do that now. She smiled briefly at him as she walked to her chair.

Taking a deep breath, and trying to sound to calm, Richard greeted her. “Good afternoon, Miss Neville.”

She put down her bag, took her own deep breath, turned around, and said, “Hello, Professor.”

As she sat down, Anne felt as if her whole body where shaking. She hadn’t been this nervous in a long time, and it was really starting to get to her. She knew she should talk to him, but she couldn’t.

The awkwardness in the room was growing quickly. He kept glancing at her, which was only making him more nervous.

She had caught him looking at her, which caused her to blush. She hoped that he didn’t see it. She was feeling more on edge by the second.

Richard decided to try and not watch her, so he pulled out his tablet, and began checking his email. There was a message from the dean, which contained the list of his student advisees. He read down the list, and then stopped. SHE was on his list. He felt his heart pounding faster in chest. _Not good_ , he thought.

He glanced at the clock -- only 3 minutes had passed. It seemed longer. Before he realized it, he heard himself saying, “Miss Neville. I have been assigned as your new advisor.”

Anne looked at him, surprised. “Excuse me?” she asked, not believing her ears.

“I just received an email with my advisees, and your name is on that list. I’m guessing you didn’t get that email yet,” Richard replied, watching her nervously.

“Uh, no. But thanks for telling me,” Anne said, trying not to sound too shocked. She couldn’t even look at him. She started fidgeting with her pen, then reached into bag and pretended to search for something.

Richard was equally unnerved. She had seemed shocked and almost scared by the prospect of having him as her advisor. This tension was becoming unbearable.

Richard was about to say something when the others began to arrive. So he started preparing for the lesson, glancing at her periodically.

Anne checked her email – nothing yet. She had been anticipating finding out who her new advisor was, but now she was concerned. She’d had a suspicion as to why this class was bothering her so much, and this news partly confirmed it. She was shaking her head when Jane sat down next to her.

“What’s wrong, Anne?” said asked.

“Nothing,” Anne replied, not convincing Jane at all. “I’m just a bit stressed out.”

“You don’t really expect me to believe that, do you?” Jane asked as she got her notebook ready. Anne just looked at her, unable to say anything.

Jane had opened her mouth to speak again, but saw Richard stand up and walk over to the door. She looked at Anne, and whispered, “God! I wish he wasn’t our professor. I would SO seduce him!”

Anne felt very … strange at that thought. So she took a deep breath, and started reviewing her notes.

Richard did his best not to look at her during the lecture, and he only marginally succeeded. Near the end of the class, he stopped talking, and stood there, silent, and looked at the confusion on the faces in front of him.

As he began to tell them about the upcoming test, he glanced over at her. She was writing furiously in her notebook, like everyone else.

He was relieved when nobody had any questions, so he dismissed them. They all then hurried out of the classroom, except her. She seemed to be having some difficulties getting her things back into her bag. Richard couldn’t help but watch her …

After Anne scurried out, still fumbling with her bag, Richard collected his things quickly, and almost ran up the stairs to his office. He shut the door, walked over the desk, and nearly collapsed into the chair. He only had about 10 minutes to calm down.

The office was his refuge. It was comfortable, safe, and quiet. He took a few deep breaths, and got out his phone. He sent his brother Edmund the following text: “I need to talk to you. Can you meet me tonight or tomorrow?”

He sighed as he closed his eyes. It was so quiet that he could almost hear Dr. Clarence’s soothing voice, telling him to relax, and not to get so worked up about things.

Richard was roused from the peaceful moment by the vibration of his phone of the desk. Edmund’s response read: “My last patient is at 5. I’ll finish his chart then head straight over. Please try to stay calm until then.”

He laughed lightly, as he thought about his brother reading his text. As Francis reminded him recently, Richard only asked for help when things got so bad that he couldn’t fix them. He knew, however, that this situation was starting to spiral out of control, and he needed to get a handle on it, and soon.

Richard was almost calm when there was a knock on his door. He glanced at the clock, and saw that it was time to start meeting with some students. As he stood to open the door, he tried to focus on the task at hand and not HER …

While Richard was struggling in his office, Anne had sought refuge in the library. She had agreed to meet Jane there after Jane’s next class. She found the most secluded corner available, and tried to regain her composure.

Anne was a mess. She was angry with herself for letting this get to her. She was frustrated, because she now knew better than to let her emotions take control. She was scared, too, because she didn’t understand why or how this could be happening. Lastly, she was hopeful that Isabel could help her figure this whole thing out. Anne texted her before class, and they agreed to meet at Isabel’s apartment for dinner. She needed to talk to someone, and even though Veronica was her best friend, she knew she couldn’t tell her this.

As she waited for Jane to join her, she decided to start studying, and focus on anything but HIM…


	8. the talk

Richard was pacing in the living room when Edmund finally arrived. As he opened the door, the questions started.

“Are you all right? What’s the matter? How bad is it?” Edmund asked as he walked in.

Richard flopped down on the couch and sighed. “No. It’s horrible. I don’t know what’s the matter with me …” he said, looking utterly distraught.

“Is it Dr. Clarence?” asked his brother, now even more worried than before. He knew his little brother. Asking for help was not Richard’s forte. It must be really bad for Richard to have called him over.

“I haven’t heard any news about ‘the old man.’ But it does sort of have to do with him,” Richard said.

“Tell me,” Edmund said, “and I want to hear everything.”

Richard began by telling him about the 3 courses which were going well. Edmund said nothing – he just listened. Then Richard paused, and Edmund looked at his little brother, saying, “It’s ok, Richard. Just tell me.”

Richard took a deep breath, and began, “It’s my war of the roses class. I am SO anxious every time I walk into that classroom. I feel my heart racing, and sometimes I can’t focus …”

Edmund looked closely at his brother, and said, “And? There’s something you’re not telling me.”

Richard got up and resumed pacing the living room. He knew he had to tell Edmund, but he couldn’t even look at him. In a low voice, he continued. “There is a student … and I … I … I like her.”

Edmund was straining to hear him, so he asked, “Did you just say that you like one of your students?!”

Richard still couldn’t face his brother, so he simply nodded.

Edmund couldn’t quite believe it, especially after what happened with Kate. But he also knew his little brother better than anyone, and Richard wouldn’t be this upset if he seriously didn’t feel something for this girl.

He got up, walked over to his brother, and said, “Look at me. LOOK AT ME.”

Richard reluctantly turned to look at Edmund. Edmund firmly put his hands on Richard’s shoulders.

“You know this can’t happen. You are the professor – she is your student. Regardless of what you MAY feel for her, it’s wrong, on a number of levels.”

Richard sighed, saying, “My brain already knows this, but the rest of me … Plus,” Richard continued bleakly, “I found out this afternoon I’m her advisor.”

Edmund just looked at him, and said, “Well you obviously can’t do that either. Being alone with her in your office would be too much of a temptation.”

“And just what would you like me to tell the dean?” Richard asked, frustrated. “I can’t be Miss Neville’s advisor, sir. Why not? I like her … I REALLY like her!”

Edmund really wanted to slap some sense into his brother, but it was very clear that this was more than just a casual infatuation, or even lust. Richard really seemed to be falling for her. He had to choose his next words carefully.

“Richard,” he began, “There is no easy solution to this problem. You simply need to focus on the class, and your work. If she needs to talk with you, meet in a public place. Don’t look at her, don’t pay any extra attention to her, and don’t do anything that might be misinterpreted.” And then, Edmund said, “If you’re lonely, I’ll find you someone.”

Richard was so appalled by his brother’s last statement that he turned around and hit him. “How dare you! This is NOT about sex! Anne is lovely – she’s smart, and pretty, and insightful, and … and …” Richard screamed.

At that moment Edmund knew that his little brother was in BIG trouble …

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Isabel sat at the table watching Anne push the food around on her plate. Something was really wrong. She hadn’t seen her little sister behave this way since Eduard, and even then, it wasn’t nearly as bad as this. Anne hadn’t said anything yet either.

So finally Isabel spoke. “Are you going to tell me what’s wrong or are you going to sit there all night playing with your dinner?”

Anne pushed the plate away and laid her head on the table. “Oh Izzy!” she moaned, “It’s such a mess!”

Isabel stood up and pulled her sister’s chair out from the table. “Come on. Let’s go into the living room.”

Anne trudged over to the couch, and fell onto it. She looked, and felt, as if she was going to cry.

“All right Annie, start at the beginning,” Isabel said.

“It’s my war of the roses class,” Anne said.

“What happened? You were so excited about that one! Is the professor as big of a nightmare as you heard?” Isabel asked.

Anne looked down at her hands, and continued. “The professor who was supposed to teach it is on sabbatical. His former student is teaching the class.”

Isabel was still confused. “That sounds like a good thing, Annie. Please just tell me what’s wrong.”

Anne finally looked at her sister, and said timidly, “Professor York is … he’s … I … I think I like him.”

Isabel remained silent, processing this information. She must’ve heard wrong. After the whole Eduard ordeal, Annie certainly couldn’t be serious. “Please Annie, just tell me the truth!”

Anne stood up and yelled at her sister. “Izzy! This is serious! He’s super smart, and a great professor, and has these amazing green eyes …”

Isabel really was stunned. “Annie! He’s your professor! You can’t like him!”

“Tell that to my shaking hands trying to take notes, and to my racing pulse! Did you honestly believe that I’d be that nervous over a class?!” Annie shouted.

Isabel was now at a loss. She knew what she would’ve done, but her little sister was definitely NOT like her. In truth, she had no idea what to tell her.

“Annie,” she said, “You love this subject. Do not let him ruin it for you. You need a good grade in the class, too. You have to try and focus on that. Don’t look at him unless he calls on you. Don’t stay after class, either. And don’t seek his help!”

Anne sat back down on the couch, looked up at her sister, and said miserably, “Izzy, he’s my advisor. I have to talk with him.”

“What? When did that happen?” Isabel asked. “I thought you had a woman advisor.”

“I did,” Anne responded, weakly. “But we found out over the summer that we’d be assigned someone new, which was a good thing, then, because I didn’t get along with mine. But he told me before class today, and I …”

“Before class? Why were you talking to him before class?” Isabel asked, knowing that couldn’t have helped Anne.

“I needed a few minutes to clear my head before class, so I went to the room. But HE was already there. And it was weird, Izzy, because he looked as miserable as I felt. That’s when he told me,” Anne said, looking down at her hands.

“Well, you obviously can’t meet with him again, especially in his office. Being alone together would be a horrible idea,” Isabel said, knowing how true that really was.

When Isabel looked at her sister, she looked as if she was about to cry. So she joined Anne on the couch and hugged her.

“It’ll be ok, Annie. Just try to concentrate on the course, and doing well. Pretend he’s Eduard. That’ll kill any feelings you might have for him.”

Anne managed a weak smile, and thanked her sister before she left.

As Isabel walked to her car, she was worried about Annie. She knew her sister, and she knew Annie was in in BIG trouble …


	9. early october

Despite the long conversation he had with Edmund, Richard was having no luck in seeing Anne as merely his student. He spent more and more time thinking about her, and those thoughts were becoming less academic every day.

To make matters worse, he was returning their exams today. And she failed. He couldn’t quite understand it. She was bright, and always added some insightful comments to the discussions. Richard knew some students weren’t good test takers, but somehow Anne didn’t seem like one of them.

His mind started to wander again, as he thought about her that day, her dirty blonde hair falling in her face as she was bent over the desk, taking her test. She almost caught him watching her, too. That had made his heart pound even faster; so much so that he was worried the entire class would hear it.

Anne was one of the last ones to finish. He could tell she was concerned, as she nervously chewed on her pen cap. Richard felt awful, knowing his test was the reason for her anxiety.

The other student finished first, and turned in his exam. As he was walking toward Richard, Anne stood up and threw her pen in her bag. She approached his desk as the other student exited the room.

Richard could feel his heart racing as she came closer. She didn’t look at him until she went to give him the test. As she did, and he reached out to take it, their fingers touched. He looked at her as he felt a shock through his entire body. Anne froze, too, and looked at him. They held each other’s gaze for what seemed like an eternity until she pulled her hand away and returned swiftly to her desk. He didn’t move until he saw her turn around to leave. Richard immediately started packing up his stuff and kept his eyes focused on his desk until he heard the door close…

He was jolted from his thoughts by the loud knocking on his office door.

“Mr. York?” asked the dean. Richard jumped out of his chair to open the door.

“Yes, sir?” he replied, inviting him in.

“I’d like to come and observe your class today. I usually do this with my new adjuncts, but under the circumstances, I felt you might benefit from constructive criticism,” explained the dean.

Richard was speechless. Why did have to observe THIS class?! He had a hard enough time under normal conditions, but this was going to be a nightmare!

“Certainly, sir,” Richard managed to say.

“Excellent. I’ll see you there shortly,” the dean said, leaving Richard alone to panic …

Anne was already seated in the classroom, fretting about the next hour and 15 minutes. She knew she failed. She hadn’t been able to study properly, let alone concentrate during the exam.

She kept thinking about HIM – how smart he was, how at ease he appeared in front of the class, how handsome he was … Every time she opened her notes, she heard his voice, intelligent but not arrogant. Anne would then see him, strong but not overbearing.

And then there was exam day, when her fingers had touched his. Anne also remembered how he’d looked at her, with those green eyes … She shivered again, recalling that brief moment, and how badly she’d wanted it to last longer …

Anne’s daydream was interrupted by a voice she didn’t recognize. She glanced up and saw a rather serious man walking in with HIM.

“Good afternoon. I’m Dean Stafford. I’ll be sitting in on your lecture today. Please don’t pay any attention to me.”

Anne glanced briefly at HIM – he looked even more nervous than normal. She felt badly for him.

He began by returning their exams. He heard the expected comments as he distributed them, and then said, “We will not be discussing the exams in class. Please feel free to come and see me during my office hours.”

Anne wanted to cry. She was right. She failed. 58. It was totally unacceptable. She also knew that she would have to meet with him. _Oh God!_ she thought. _This can’t get much worse._

It did, though, for Richard. As he handed Anne her test, he could see how upset she already was. When he returned to his desk, he glanced at her, and his heart sank to see her so clearly distraught.

As much as he tried, Richard couldn’t stop thinking about her. And it showed throughout his entire lesson. He was distracted, unable to maintain his focus. It couldn’t have been any more of a disaster if he planned it.

Richard sat down as the students left. He blew it. He just destroyed his own career. He sighed as the dean approached his desk.

“You were exceedingly nervous today, Mr. York. I’m very sorry,” said Dean Stafford.

Richard stood up to apologize, but before he could respond, the dean continued. “I should’ve given you more than 5 minutes’ notice that I was coming to observe you. This is entirely my fault.”

Richard shook his head, and said, “No sir! I was distracted by something else, and couldn’t focus on my lecture. Plus, I knew the students were going to be nervous about receiving their exam grades, and having you present just added to the anxiety.”

Dean Stafford regarded the young man. He was so serious and driven that he didn’t yet understand that he did nothing wrong, and that he (the dean) was very pleased. He patted Richard’s shoulder, saying, “You did fine, Mr. York. I was most impressed given the circumstances. Don’t worry. Everything is all right.”

He smiled at Richard and left. Richard just stood there, stunned. He didn’t understand what happened. He merely sighed again, packed up his things, and returned to his office.

As he exited the stairwell, Richard could hear the noise in the hallway. He turned the corner to see most of his class, waiting for him. They turned, as he approached his office.

Before anyone could speak, Richard did. “I’m going to get a sheet of paper, sign your name, and I’ll see each of you in turn. If you have class, send me an email to schedule an appointment.”

They moved so he could go into his office. SHE wasn’t there. He sighed, and returned with the sheet. He met with each student, and after nearly 3 hours, he was finished.

 _That was exhausting_ , Richard thought, as relaxed back into the big leather chair. He pulled out his phone, and saw that Edmund had sent him a few messages. He put the phone aside and opened his email. There were 3 messages, 1 from the redhead and 2 from other students. Nothing from HER, though …

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Veronica arrived home, the house was almost dark. She knew Anne was home – she saw her jacket by the door – but it was dead silent.

She figured Anne must be in the library, studying. She peeked through the door and just barely saw Anne sitting in the window seat.

“Anne? Are you ok?” Veronica asked. No response. So she asked again.

“No,” Anne said, sniffling. “But I’ll figure something out.”

Veronica knew that from experience that Anne didn’t want to talk, so she replied, “If you need me, I’ll be in the kitchen,” and left her friend alone in the darkness.

When she heard Veronica close the door, Anne started to cry again. She was utterly distraught. She failed her test, and she needed to meet with HIM.

HIM … Professor Richard York … The handsome and brilliant man that made her feel like no one had ever made her feel before. She looked over at her desk, her laptop still open but now asleep. She had tried emailing him 4 times, but couldn’t. Her hand literally shook every time she’d attempted to hit “send.”

She received a text from Jane – “I’m meeting with our yummy prof tomorrow. Think I can seduce him in his own office?!” – and nearly threw the phone across the room. It shouldn’t have upset her so badly, but the thought of Jane alone with HIM sickened Anne.

She stood up, even angrier with herself, and walked to her desk. She shut off the computer, went upstairs, and locked herself in her room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Richard was beyond relieved when Jane left. She obviously didn’t care about her exam grade, because she flirted non-stop with him during her appointment. He was so annoyed that when she left, he slammed the door behind her.

He was walking back to his desk when there was a knock on his door. Richard sighed, as he told whomever it was to come in. The door still hadn’t opened, so he walked back and opened it.

SHE was standing there, hand outstretched as if she were reaching for the doorknob. Richard tried to speak, but no words came out.

Anne looked up at him, also speechless. She hadn’t expected him to open the door. “Professor?” she asked timidly, “I realize your office hours are nearly over, but do you have a few minutes to talk with me about the test?

Richard still couldn’t find his voice, so he motioned for her to go in. He shut the door, against his better judgment and Edmund’s advice, and sat down behind his desk.

He took a deep breath and waited for her to speak. She was visibly upset, and wasn’t looking at him. His heart was pounding in his chest, and his hands suddenly felt clammy.

“Miss Neville? Do you have any specific questions for me?” he asked, the nervousness in voice very apparent.

Anne finally looked up at him. _God!_ she thought, _his eyes are so green!_ “Um, well, not really,” she replied, angry that she sounded like an idiot.

She pulled her exam out her bag. “I know that I did really badly. I was unusually nervous that day,” she said. The unsteadiness in her voice was somewhat disconcerting. “I know I can do much better,” she continued, “and I just wanted to say that I … uh, I …”

Richard regarded her carefully. She looked as uncomfortable as he felt. All he wanted to do was hug her, and tell her that it’d be all right. He’d help her. But he knew that was impossible. He sighed, and said, “It’ll be all right, Miss Neville.”

“Anne,” she whispered. “Excuse me?” Richard said. She looked up him, and he nearly died. “Miss Neville is so formal…”

“Of course,” he managed to say, as he tried to breathe. She smiled weakly – he was clearly as anxious as she was. All Anne could think of was taking his hand and experiencing that same feeling as when they touched before.

Anne really couldn’t take any more of this. She stood abruptly, causing Richard to do the same. “Thank you, professor. I’ll do better next time, I promise.”

Richard was unable to reply until she reached the door. Before she opened it, he said, quietly, “Richard.”

She turned around and looked at him. Against her own better judgment, and Izzy’s advice, she smiled warmly at him. When he smiled back, she felt herself get a little dizzy.

She nodded and left.

As the elevator door closed, she sighed. Anne leaned against the wall. Her heart was beating so fast, and she was almost hyperventilating. _Oh my God!_ she thought. _How am I going to make it through class now?_

While Anne was leaving the building, Richard literally fell back into his chair. Her smile was intoxicating, and when she asked him to call her Anne … _I am in SUCH trouble_ , he thought. _How am I going to teach that class?!_


	10. the midterm

Richard jolted awake as his alarm went off. This is intolerable, he thought, as he flopped back down onto his pillow. He’d been waking up like this for a couple of weeks now, sweaty, breathing hard, and very aroused.

He dreamt about HER nearly every night … Richard would close his eyes, and see her lying in bed next to him, naked. She’d kiss him, and then he'd kiss her neck, and let his tongue tease her. He’d feel her hands caress him, and then grab his shoulders as entered her. He’d hear her moaning until she cried out his name in sheer pleasure.

And THAT was usually the moment when his alarm would sound, or he’d just wake up on his own. He was exhausted.

Richard also had these sorts of thoughts during the day. Tuesdays and Thursdays were the worst, obviously, because he actually did see her.

Edmund had yelled at him when they met for dinner on Sunday night. He yelled at his little brother for not following his advice and meeting with HER, alone in his office. He was also upset that Richard was continuing to see her as something other than his student.

Richard had been grateful that he hadn’t mentioned their most recent encounter to his brother …

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Anne had barely left her library since Saturday. She went to class, and showered, but that was it. She ate, and even slept there. Her midterm was today, and she’d been trying to study.

But she couldn’t. She kept thinking about HIM. She’d been having the most erotic dreams about him … about him kissing her, touching her, feeling him inside of her … Anne had NEVER dreamt about anyone like this.

The intensity of her dreams had skyrocketed after their meeting on Tuesday …

She had emailed him over the weekend … “Can we meet during your office hours on Tuesday? I’d like to go over a few things before the test. Anne.”

She really hadn’t expected such a prompt response … “Of course. 3pm. Richard.”

Anne kept reading his response. He had signed it “Richard.” She sighed.

She had prepared a list of things that she wanted to ask him. She was fairly confident that she knew the answers, but she needed to do better.

After class that day, she went to the library to return a few books, and then returned to the history building. At 250pm, she left the student lounge on the 1st floor and went up to his office. His door was open, but she knocked anyway.

“Professor York?” she said, remaining outside.

“Please come in, Miss Neville.”

Anne walked into his office, closing the door behind her, and sat down across from him. She was trying so hard to stay calm that she didn’t hear him speaking to her.

“Anne?” he asked. She jerked her head up, saying, “Sorry, I, uh, was trying to remember what I wanted to discuss with you.”

Richard smiled slightly, and watched as she retrieved her notebook from her bag. He’d been looking forward to this meeting since she emailed him.   _FOCUS!!_ he screamed to himself.

“Richard?” she asked quietly, seeing that his mind was elsewhere.

“Where, uh, would you like to begin?” he asked her, and waited for her reply.

They began discussing some of the topics which would be covered on the midterm. At one point, something Anne mentioned reminded Richard of an article that he read. So he pulled it up on his laptop and told her to come over and look at it.

Anne walked behind the desk, pulled the extra chair over and sat down next to him. She could feel her heart racing, and could hardly concentrate on the article.

Richard was feeling equally nervous. She was sitting so close to him that he could smell her perfume. And he could just feel her warm breath on his neck.

Richard looked over, and watched her. Anne could feel his gaze upon her, and blushed. He smiled, and she turned her head to look at him. They sat there, for what seemed like an eternity, just looking into each other’s eyes.

All Richard wanted to do was kiss her, and hold her. He saw a similar look of want in Anne’s eyes.

As he leaned toward her, breathing heavily, Richard’s brain suddenly decided to take over. He jumped out his chair, and backed away from his desk. Anne was equally startled, and went to grab her bag.

“Anne,” he said, trying to regain control, “Anne …”

She was struggling to get her bag off the floor as she was a little lightheaded. “Richard …” she said, nearly falling to floor.

He rushed over to her, and kneeled on the floor next to her.

“I’m sorry. I’m SO sorry,” he said, “I shouldn’t have …”

Anne looked up at him, and shook her head. “No, it’s my fault. I … I …”

Even though he knew it was wrong, Richard took her hand and held it. He felt her shiver, and his heart began pounding even faster.

“Anne,” he said slowly, “I’m sorry. I should’ve turned the monitor around so you could read it. I shouldn’t have had you sit next to me. And I REALLY shouldn’t have tried to …” Richard couldn’t even finish his sentence, he was so ashamed.

Anne took a deep breath, and touched his other hand. She heard him sigh as he felt her touch.

“It’s as much my fault,” she began. “I shut the door, I pushed my chair closer to yours, and I … I wanted …”

Richard met her eyes, but couldn’t respond. They just sat there, holding hands, on the floor.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Both Richard and Anne jumped up. She looked at him briefly as she grabbed her bag. After a moment, Richard responded. “Yes?”

“It’s Professor Stanley. Can I come in?”

Richard looked at Anne, and she nodded. Anne took a deep breath, composed herself, and walked to the door. As she opened it, she glanced back at Richard.

“Thank you professor. I’ll see you in class on Thursday.”

“You’re welcome, Miss Neville. Professor Stanley, please come in." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Richard had been replaying the same thing in his own mind as he sat in his office before class. He really hoped that she did well on this exam.

As he collected his papers, Richard did everything that he could think of to calm down. He took several deeps breaths as he went downstairs and down the hallway to the classroom.

The little noise there was in the room died as soon as Richard entered. He saw Anne was already there, studying. She glanced up at him as he walked to the desk, and he felt his pulse start to race.

As Anne looked up him, she felt herself blush, so she quickly undid her hair to hide it. She also noticed her hand was shaking as she turned the pages of her notes.

 _CONCENTRATE!!_ she yelled to herself. She had to do really well on this test, not just for her grade, but she also wanted to prove to HIM that she was as smart as he believed her to be.

During the next hour and fifteen minutes, they kept stealing glances at each other. Richard was trying to grade the other class’s exams, but had to grade the same one 4 times because he was so distracted. Anne was having a little better luck focusing on her own test, but when she caught him looking at her, her mind went momentarily blank.

Again, she was the last one to finish. Anne thought she did better; at least she hoped so. As she walked up to the desk, she couldn’t even look at him.

“Anne?” he said in a low voice. “Are you all right?”

She nodded as she handed him her exam. “Yes. And I think I did better,” she replied, and added, “Have a good break … Richard.”

He knew he may regret it, but Richard asked, “Are you going away?”

Anne was surprised by his question. Was he asking to be polite, or did he have something else in mind? She hoped it was the latter.

“My sister wanted me to go stay in the city with her, but I think I’m just going to stay here. I need to catch up on a few things,” she said, hoping that she’d get a response.

“I see. My oldest brother was not too pleased when I declined his invitation to spend the long weekend with him at my parents’ cabin,” Richard said. “I have 4 classes worth of exams to grade, and I know I won’t do any work there.”

Anne laughed. Richard didn’t seem like the outdoorsy type.

“What’s so funny?” he asked.

She felt herself blushing again as she answered, “You … you don’t really seem like the outdoorsy, cabin type.”

As he smiled at her, she felt lightheaded again, so she sat in the seat closest to his desk.

“It’s not like that. It’s up at the lake, very modern, but not conducive to work,” he said as he continued to smile at her.

They just sat there, looking at each other, just like in the office.

Richard still wanted to kiss her, but knew he couldn’t, especially not in the classroom.

Anne wanted to go over to the desk and kiss him, too, but she also knew it was too dangerous. So she stood up to get her bag, and said, “Try not to work too hard this weekend. I’ll see on Tuesday … Richard.”

Hearing her say his name just made Richard want her even more. He’d be lucky to get any work done this weekend at all, as he knew he’d be thinking about her.  

“You, too, Anne,” he said.

She walked up to the desk, and then quickly glanced at the door. Even though she knew she shouldn’t, she reached out, and gently touched his cheek. She had been a little worried, but when she saw Richard grinning at her, she knew it was all right.

Richard was a bit shocked, but when he felt that familiar shiver as she touched him, his smile grew even wider and then his fingers found her hand. She blushed again, smiled, and left.

Richard stood there for a few minutes, and didn’t even realize that he was touching his hand to his cheek …


	11. fall break -- part 1

Richard had been at the bar for nearly 2 hours, and he was miserable. He had agreed to go out with a few of his fellow grad students, as they didn’t really get to see him anymore. He hadn’t wanted to go, but he felt obligated.

He regretted it from the moment he walked in to the place. His buddies were interested in drinking and hitting on the few females that were there, especially now they’d finished their meal.

So Richard decided that he’d had enough, threw some money on the table, and got up to leave. One of friends grabbed his arm, and tried to stop him.

“Guys, thanks, but I’m really just not in the mood for this tonight. Plus, I still have a ton of work to do. I’ll talk to you soon,” Richard said walked to the door.

As soon as felt the cold October air hit his face, he felt a little better. While his buddies were flirting with the college girls, he was thinking about Anne, and how she had touched his cheek. He felt his face flush all over again at the mere thought of that moment.

Richard had parked on campus, and walked to the bar, which was a few blocks away. He was grateful that he’d driven himself, because now he didn’t have to wait for his friends, and he could also enjoy the starry autumn night as he returned to campus. _I’d much rather be enjoying the stars with Anne_ , Richard thought, as he walked slowly down the street.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Anne was sitting at the table, staring out the window. She had stopped paying attention to the conversation between her friends a long time ago.

They had begged her to meet them at the café for coffee and desserts. Anne hadn’t wanted to go at all. She would’ve been perfectly happy sitting at home, in her library, doing nothing. She had planned on relaxing tonight, and then catching up on her work over the weekend.

Her friends had derailed those plans. So here she was, bored and fairly grumpy. Anne wondered what Richard was doing. _He’s probably knee deep in exams_ , she thought, a faint smile forming on her lips.

She still couldn’t believe that she’d touched his cheek. That sensation had been wonderful, but then he touched her hand. Anne really thought her heart stopped. It was amazing, and now it was consuming her.

She continued to stare out the window, trying to come up with a good excuse to leave. She saw someone out of the corner of her eye walking down the street.

All of a sudden, she grabbed her purse and left some money on the table. She told her friends she had a headache and was going home. She quickly put on her coat, and left.

As Anne reached the sidewalk, she was surprised by how cold it had gotten. She began to walk faster in an effort to catch up with the person in front of her, and to stay warm.

She caught a break at the corner. There were several cars, so the person was waiting for the light to change. She slowed down, and as casually as she could, Anne walked up next to the person.

“Shouldn’t you be buried under some midterms right about now?” she asked, not looking at him.

Richard snapped his head to the right to see HER standing next him. “Anne! What are you doing here?”

She looked up at him and smiled. “I was at the café with a few friends, and I saw you walk by,” she replied, hoping that he might be happy to see her as well.

Richard grinned at her as his heart began to race. “So you just left?”

She laughed, and then looked down at the sidewalk as she answered, “I didn’t really want to be there anyway. They sort of guilted me into going out. I wanted to stay home. But now …”

Richard studied her carefully. He was overjoyed right now. Not only was she here, standing beside him, but she had run after him. _You CANNOT do this!_ he thought. “But what?” he asked.

Anne knew she shouldn’t say it, but she couldn’t stop herself. “But I’m glad I went now, because I … I got to see you.”

Richard wanted to respond with a kiss, but he knew it was wrong. So instead, he asked, “Where are you going?”

Anne wanted to say _wherever you’re going_ but she couldn’t. “Back to campus to get the bus back to my street. Why are you walking this way?”

“I parked on campus and walked to the bar,” he said. And then, without thinking, Richard asked, “Do you want a ride?”

Anne didn’t know how to answer. She wanted to say yes, but he was her professor, and things were already starting to get messy. She also didn’t want to say no, and have him be offended or angry with her. So she decided on a little humor. “Are you a good driver?”

Richard laughed, and impulsively grabbed her hand and led her across the street. She squeezed it tightly, and he smiled even wider. “I promise we won’t get into trouble.”

She looked up at him and smiled back. Honestly, Anne would LOVE to get into any kind of trouble with him, but she kept that to herself.

When they reached Richard’s car, Anne giggled as he opened the door for her. “Thank you, kind sir,” she said, still chuckling.

“You’re quite welcome, my lady,” Richard said, also laughing. “I do, however, need directions to your place,” he said.

As Anne guided him to her house, she had mixed emotions. On the one hand, she would love to invite him in, show him her library, and talk, or maybe do something that didn’t involve any talking. On the other hand, Anne knew that she couldn’t do anything more than thank him. He was still her professor, and she still had to go to class for 2 more months. She was so conflicted that she didn’t notice he was stopped at an intersection, waiting for some direction.

“Anne?” No response. So Richard lightly touched her arm. “Anne?”

She jolted back to reality, and felt his hand on her arm. She sighed, and looked at him.

Every time she looked at him, Richard felt all his resolve just melt away. He really wanted to kiss her, badly. But he knew he couldn’t. “Where am I going?” he managed to ask her.

Anne smiled at him, seeing this was hard on him too. “Go straight for 2 more blocks, and then turn left. It’s the second house on the right,” she instructed.

When they arrived, he shut off the car and got out to open her door. As he did, Richard extended his hand to her. He felt that familiar shock as she took it. Anne let him help her out of the car, and walked her to the door.

They just stood there, in the cold autumn air, looking at each other. Neither one of them wanted the moment to end.

Richard spoke first. “I guess I’ll see you Tuesday in class.”

Anne nodded. She didn’t want him to go, so she reached out and took his hand. “I don’t want you to go. But I don’t know …” she said in a frightened voice.

Richard wasn’t sure what to do either. What he did know was that they were both getting cold standing outside, and she was beginning to shiver.

“I know you realize how dangerous this is,” he said, waiting for her response. She merely nodded, but still held his hand.

“I … we …” Richard stammered, unsure of what to say.

“I have a little library. Would you like to see it? I can make us some hot cider, and then you can go …”she said hesitantly.

Richard sighed. “That sounds fairly safe. But I can’t stay long,” he said, as she unlocked the door.

She turned to look at him. _Dear god_ , he thought, _she looks so pretty in the low light coming from inside the house. This is NOT a smart move!_

“No, you can’t,” she said, trying to convince herself more than agree with him.

Richard stopped just inside the door, took off his coat, and removed his shoes. She watched him curiously, and then laughed.

“What?” he asked, smiling at her. _Damn! Why do I get weak every time he smiles at me?_ she asked herself. “You took your shoes off.”

“I always do. My mom is particular about shoes in the house,” he replied. “I’ll help you with the cider, and then you can show me your library.”

She led him into the kitchen, and they heated the cider. Anne then brought him into her special place.

“Wow! This is lovely! I wish I had something like this,” Richard said as he looked around the room. “You have a great collection!”

Anne looked at him and smiled. Beaming with pride, she said, “My dad always read to me. He loves books, too. My sister thinks it’s an addiction.”

Richard sat down in the big leather chair and sipped his cider. She sat down behind the desk, looked at him, and laughed.

“Now what?” he asked.

“It’s weird, with you over there and me behind the desk,” she replied giddily.

“We can fix that,” Richard said mischievously. He stood up and started to walk behind the desk.

Anne immediately stood up to meet him. He was directly in front of her, looking down at her. As they stared into each other’s eyes, she felt her pulse racing.

Richard was so close to her. He was breathing quickly, and he felt flushed.  He gently touched her cheek, as she had done to him a few days. She tilted her head and closed her eyes. Anne sighed. His warm hand felt SO good on her cheek. She really wanted him to kiss her. She wanted to kiss him, too.

Suddenly she opened her eyes and stepped back. She shook her head, saying, “Richard … we … we can’t …”

His heart sank even though he knew she was right. Richard nodded, and started to walk out of the library.

She called after him. “Richard? Please don’t be mad …”

He stopped and turned to face her. “I’m not mad, Anne. You’re absolutely right. I should’ve stayed in my own chair, but …”

She walked up to him and took his hand. “No, it’s my fault too. I just …”

Richard sighed. This was upsetting her as much as it was bothering him. “Anne, please don’t be so upset.”

She smiled at him. He pulled his hand away, walked over to the door, and began to put on his shoes and coat. “I’ll see you Tuesday in class. Enjoy the rest of your weekend,” Richard said, as he opened the door.

“Richard?” she said. He stopped, and looked back at her. She smiled at him again, and said, “Thank you. I hope you’ll be ok.”

Richard returned her smile. “I will be. Good night, Anne.”

She watched him walk to his car, and drive off. As Anne turned from the window, she noticed something on the floor. It was his scarf. She picked it up – it smelled of his cologne.

Anne sighed as she walked back into the library, sat on the window seat, and started to cry.

_This can’t be happening! I can’t be falling for him!_

Anne got up and sat in the big leather chair.  She continued to hold onto the scarf – HIS scarf.

_What am I going to do?_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As soon as Richard got home, he fell onto the couch. He felt awful.

_I can’t believe I almost kissed her … twice! What the hell is the matter with me?! I can’t fall in love with my student!_

He had so much work to do, yet all he could think of was HER, and how it felt to touch her. He gave up even attempting to try to work. He was frustrated, and angry. Richard was upsetting her, and that made it even worse.

As he slowly walked to his bedroom, Richard thought, _How am I going to get through the rest of the semestre?!_


	12. fall break -- part 2

Anne was grateful that she had the house to herself for one more day. She still couldn’t believe what happened on Friday night.

She sighed, holding his scarf. She’d run after him, then he grabbed her hand. He’d driven her home, and she’d invited him in.

And then they went into her library. _I should’ve just kissed him_ , she thought sadly. _Maybe then I wouldn’t be so miserable_. Anne knew, however, that if she HAD kissed Richard, things would be even worse.

 _RICHARD_. Just the mere thought of his name made her shiver. Eduard had never caused this sort of reaction, or anyone else, for that matter.

All weekend she’d dreamt about that moment in the library, when he was standing in front of, wanting to kiss her, too. In her dreams, however, they did MUCH more than kiss …

Richard had grabbed her by the waist and kissed her passionately. She then took his hand and led him upstairs to her room. They undressed each other affectionately, and then he gently picked her up and put her on the bed. She smiled as he leaned over and kissed her again. She moaned as his tongue caressed her breasts, and felt his hands touching her. Anne gasped as he slowly entered her. She let her hands wander over his back as they found their rhythm. As Anne felt her insides explode with pleasure, she screamed his name and dug her nails into his back …

Her daydream was interrupted by the sound of an email notification from her laptop. She sighed, annoyed, and walked over to her desk. Still clutching the scarf, she sat down, and opened her inbox.

Anne screamed. It was from Richard! _Anne … I realize we’re still on break, but I thought we could meet to discuss your midterm. Tomorrow at 6 in my office? Richard._

Suddenly, Anne felt scared. Did she fail again? She didn’t think so. Perhaps he wanted to discuss Friday night. _Damn! What should I do?_

Richard couldn’t quite believe he’d just sent that email. It was SO wrong to even suggest that they meet again, but he legitimately wanted to talk to her about her test.

He was exceedingly proud of her. She did much better – 85. He knew she was capable of much more, but all things considered, it was a vast improvement.

Richard was becoming increasingly nervous. She still hadn’t responded. _She’s probably mad at me because I tried to kiss her twice, he thought sullenly. Or maybe she’s mad because I DIDN’T kiss her._

He stood up, set his tablet on the coffee table, and began pacing the living room yet again. His situation was deteriorating rapidly.

He woke up 4 times last night, so aroused that he had to “alleviate the pressure,” as Edmund would say. Kate had never affected him this way, and he was going to marry her!! His dreams about Anne were so vivid and realistic that when he awoke, he was crying out her name.

_YOU ARE AN IDIOT!!!! She is your student! If anyone finds out that you even like her …_

Richard’s rant was interrupted by a ding from his tablet. He walked back to the couch, sat down, and picked up his tablet.

 _Richard … I’ll see you tomorrow at 6pm. Anne._ He smiled. But he was conflicted. He couldn’t wait to see her, but he knew that he had to behave professionally. Richard had to maintain his control. _Yeah, right,_ he thought.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Richard had purposely scheduled the meeting for 6, knowing that there would be no one there. Or if there were, they wouldn’t be there for long.

As he waited in the quiet office, he closed his eyes and thought about Dr. Clarence. He’d be so disappointed in Richard. He had such faith in Richard’s abilities, and all he could was fantasize about Anne. And it wasn’t just about them being together physically, either. She was smart, and he knew that if they had the chance to talk, he’d enjoy himself just as much.

Anne was thankful the building was almost entirely empty. As she approached Richard’s office, she reminded herself that she was a student coming to see her professor about her midterm. Nothing more.

The door was open, so she peeked inside. Richard was sitting behind his desk, head tilted back, eyes closed. _Don’t even think about it_ , she told herself as firmly as she could.

She knocked lightly on the door. “Professor York?” she asked quietly.

 _Anne’s sweet voice_ , he thought. _STOP!!! You are the professor! Start acting liking it_ , he scolded himself.

“Miss Neville, please come in,” he responded, sitting up in his chair.

Anne shut the door and approached his desk. As she did so, she noticed Richard pulling an exam from a pile sitting on his desk. He held it out to her.

“Thank you. Did I do so badly that you needed to speak with me before class?” she asked apprehensively.

“On the contrary. You did much better. I was very impressed by some of your answers. There is still room for improvement, but you’re definitely on the right track,” Richard replied.

Anne slowly opened her exam and saw the grade. She smiled and breathed a sigh of relief. “I got scared when I received your message. I thought I failed again,” she said.

Richard smiled at her. “I knew you could do better, and you did. I also know that you’ll do even better on the next test,” he said assuredly.

Anne finally looked up at him. He was smiling at her. She could feel her resolve dissipating by the second. She knew she should leave but she couldn’t make herself get up.

Richard continued to look at her. She looked conflicted, which is exactly how he felt. If she stayed much longer, things might stop being professional.

They both stood up at the same time, still looking at each other.

“If there’s … uh … nothing else, then I guess, I … I’ll, uh, go,” Anne stammered. She was struggling to remain in control.

Richard was frozen in his spot. He couldn’t say a word. He shook his head. _To hell with this_ , he suddenly thought.

“Anne … wait,” he said as he walked out from behind his desk to meet her.

She stopped, and slowly turned around. Her heart was pounding as he approached her.

Richard stopped in front of her. He felt flushed standing that close to her again. “We can’t keep doing this,” he said.

Anne looked down, knowing what was coming next. She sighed and prepared herself.

All of a sudden, Richard grabbed her by the waist, pulled her to him, and kissed her.

She gasped. This was certainly NOT what she expected. The moment she felt his lips touch hers, she felt that same shiver, and wrapped her arms around his neck.

Richard smiled as he felt her arms around him. As their kiss become more passionate, he heard her moan ever so slightly. That only made him want her more, but it was too dangerous to continue this in his office.

He gently pulled away from her. She looked up at him, smiled, and rested her head on his chest.

“Anne …” She looked at him again to see him smiling at her. “Richard …”

“Anne, we have to talk about this,” Richard said softly. Anne nodded as he led her to the small sofa against the wall.

“Before you say anything,” Anne started, “I just want you to know that I’ve … I’ve wanted to kiss you since I first met with you. I know this is not a good idea, and I don’t understand how it happened, but I don’t … I don’t want to stop.”

Anne waited anxiously as he looked at her. He smiled and took hold of her hand.

“I don’t want to stop either, but this is wrong. I’m your professor. If anyone were to even suspect that something was going on, I’d be fired and you’d be expelled,” Richard said seriously.

She looked at him for a moment, and then laid her head on his shoulder. “I know,” she said, “but …”

“But what?” Richard asked her, as he wrapped an arm around her.

“I’m willing to do this if you are,” she said hesitantly.

He smiled. She liked him. She was willing to take a huge risk to be with him. _I’m falling in love with her …_

“Richard?” Anne asked, looking up at him. He was smiling. _Could this really be happening? Could I possibly be …_

“Are you sure? This could turn ugly in a hurry if we’re not extremely careful,” Richard said.

She nodded and smiled. “I’m sure. Are you?” Anne asked, hoping his response was the same as hers.

He responded by kissing her again. He moaned as she wrapped her arms around his waist, bringing them closer.

As he pulled away, Richard began formulating a strategy. “First thing … we need a plan. We have to figure out how to behave like a professor and a student in class. There can be no favoritism or special treatment of any kind. And we absolutely CANNOT be seen anywhere near campus together.”

Anne nodded in agreement. “I think we can do that. I know how hard I work at something when I want it badly enough …”

Richard laughed and kissed her forehead. “Me, too! And if you actually need to discuss something school related, this time is good. Almost everyone leaves around 530pm.”

Anne smiled. She liked how serious he was about this. _He really likes me!_ “Or I could discuss school stuff with you when we meet privately,” she said, looking at him mischievously.

Richard continued to look at her. _She likes me._ “Ok. But we’ll need to plan things out very carefully. We can’t tell anyone about this,” he said.

Anne looked down.

“Anne? What is it?”

“I sort of told my sister that I liked you,” she said. She was worried that he’d be angry with her.

Instead Richard chuckled. “You find this amusing?” she asked, slightly confused.

“I told my brother about you, too,” Richard said, touching her cheek. “I nearly beat him up!”

“Why? What did he say?” Anne asked, suddenly curious.

Richard smiled, and said, “Honestly, it was nothing. I got very angry over a stupid comment. But I needed to talk to someone, and I knew he’d keep his mouth shut.”

“My sister upset me, too. She won’t say anything either. I’m actually glad I wasn’t the only one feeling that way,” Anne said, smiling at him again.

Richard kissed her again, and then said, “I think you should go. I don’t know how much longer I can restrain myself.”

Anne laughed as she hugged him one last time. As she pulled away from him, she put on her best serious face. “I’ll see you tomorrow in class, Professor.”

Richard nodded, and replied, “Tomorrow, Miss Neville.”

Anne grabbed her bag, and walked out the door. Richard walked to the door, and watched her walk down the hallway to the elevator.

Little did either of them know that someone was watching …


	13. late october

Francis was more than a little concerned. Edmund, Richard’s brother, just texted him. _Richard’s in trouble. He needs our help. Can you meet me at his place tonight @ 7pm?_

He was confused. Richard had sounded fine when they talked. His classes seemed to be going well, and last week, he’d been in a much better mood.

Edmund wouldn’t have texted him unless something was really wrong. So he responded. I’ll be there.

While Francis was worrying about Richard, Veronica was concerned about Anne.

A few weeks ago, Anne did nothing but mope around the house, and lock herself in her library. When she came back from break, Anne was like a totally different person. She was happier, and behaving like the Anne that she knew.

But she didn’t know why. Every time Veronica asked her what was going on, Anne just smiled and told her that everything was fine. Veronica was still worried, though. She was considering calling Anne’s sister Isabel, but she had no idea what she would tell her.

So Veronica decided to do a little investigating while Anne was still on campus …

Anne was meeting with Richard. It was almost 6pm, so the department was nearly empty. She tried to maintain her composure as she walked down the hallway to his office, but she couldn’t wipe the smile off her face. She was so excited to see him that she didn’t notice Professor Stanley peeking out of his door.

Richard had left the door open for her. When he heard the knock, he smiled. He couldn’t wait to see her. No, he thought honestly, _I can’t wait to hold her in my arms and kiss her._

“What are you smiling about?” she asked in a soft voice, as the office was so quiet.

“Just this very smart and pretty girl that I know,” Richard replied, getting up and walking toward her.

She sighed as he stopped in front of her, and took her in his arms. Anne rested her head against him, and they stood there for a few minutes, holding each other and enjoying the closeness.

Finally he led her to the small leather couch, and they sat down.

“So I think we’re doing ok in class,” Richard started, in a serious tone. “I have shown you no favoritism, and I hardly look at you."

Anne rolled her eyes, saying, “Yes. Jane is very pleased that you are looking in HER direction now!”

Richard chuckled and kissed her lightly. “Do you think your flirting with one of your classmates has gone unnoticed?!” he asked jokingly.

Anne put her hands on his shoulders and kissed his nose. “All part of my scheme, Professor,” she said, smiling. “Now that we have discussed ‘the plan,’ can we please get on to more important and ENJOYABLE things?” she asked, sliding closer to him on the couch.

Richard smiled at her, and pulled her close to him. As she wrapped her arms his neck, he said, “We should probably do this elsewhere …”

Anne kissed his neck. “I’ll find out when Veronica is going to be at the studio. You can meet me then.”

Richard moaned softly at the prospect of being alone with her in a safe place. “Now that sounds like a plan,” he replied as he began to kiss her …

Suddenly, there were no voices coming from the other side of the door. Even though he couldn’t distinguish the words, Professor Stanley knew that they’d been talking. Now, there was nothing.

He’d seen the look on the girl’s face as she approached York’s door. He knew that look. Stanley also knew that she’d been meeting much more frequently with York.

He was leaning against the door now, straining to hear anything, when the elevator doors opened. Stanley jumped back and started towards his office. As he was walking, he began to formulate a plan of his own …

While Anne and Richard were kissing with Professor Stanley outside the door, Veronica was in Anne’s bedroom. She was looking for some evidence of Anne’s sudden change.

Sadly, she found nothing. She was very careful to put everything back as she found it. So she decided to go down to her library.

Veronica looked in Anne’s desk, and on the shelves, but found nothing. Then she remembered the window seat. The bench lifted up to reveal a storage chest.

Veronica took a picture on her phone of how the pillows were arranged, and then lifted up the bench.

There were only 2 items – a small locked box, and a blue wool scarf. She’d never seen that scarf. When she picked it up, she smelled a man’s cologne.

 _Ah hah! There’s a new man in Anne’s life_ , Veronica thought. _No wonder why she’s been so happy! But I wonder who he is …_

It was approaching 7pm. As Veronica was rummaging through Anne’s library, Edmund was sitting in his car, waiting for Francis.

He saw the headlights pulling up behind him. _Francis_ , Edmund thought. He got out of his car, and met Francis on the sidewalk.

“Francis thanks for meeting me,” Edmund said, as they walked up to the porch.

“Does he know we’re coming?” Francis asked.

“No, he doesn’t. If I had asked him, Richard would’ve refused,” Edmund replied.

Francis didn’t say anything, and stood on the porch as Edmund knocked on the door. There was no response. Edmund knocked again, much harder this time. Still nothing. So Edmund pulled out his keys, and unlocked the door.

“Richard! Richard!” he yelled, but still no response. It was nearly 7pm.

“Do you have any idea where he is?” he asked Francis.

Francis shook his head. “He’s almost always home by 530pm. He didn’t mention anything to me.”

Edmund looked around, and sat down on the couch. “Then we wait,” he said, exasperated.

Francis wasn’t sure if it was a good idea, but he sat down in the recliner, and wondered where Richard could be …

Richard sighed as he heard the alarm on his phone go off. He slowly pulled away from Anne. She looked at him so sweetly that his heart melted.

“It’s 730pm. We need to go,” he said, somewhat sadly.

“I know. But can’t we stay a little longer?” she pleaded with him. She liked being in the office with him. It was so quiet, and peaceful. It was as if nothing else existed except them.

Richard kissed the top of her head. “You have to leave before me, in case anyone is around. And I do have work to do for tomorrow,” he said, somewhat seriously.

Anne sighed, hating this part of her new reality. “All right,” she answered, standing up. “But I was serious about you coming over to my house.”

Richard stood up and walked to his desk. “I know. And I fully intend on holding you to that,” he replied.

She walked over to him and kissed him passionately before heading to the door.

“Be safe on your way home, Anne,” Richard said softly.

She turned and smiled him. “I will. You too, Richard,” she said before opening the door.

Stanley poked his head out the door. The girl seemed to be teetering as she walked to the elevator. _Very interesting,_ he thought. He waited to see how York looked, but he was still in his office.

After about 15 minutes, York finally exited his office. He had a huge grin on his face. _No_ , Stanley thought, _that can’t be it. York wouldn’t be that stupid …_

“He couldn’t be that stupid,” Edmund said under his breath.

Francis looked over at him, and said, “What did Richard do? You said he was in trouble.”

Edmund shook his head. “I’m a little surprised he told me instead of you. You are his best friend.”

Francis was becoming increasingly concerned. “Is he all right? What happened?”

Edmund regarded his brother’s friend, and told him the whole story. He paid close attention to Francis’s reactions.

Just as Francis was about to respond, the front door opened.

Richard was more than a little stunned to see his brother and best friend sitting in his living room.

“Where the hell have you been?!” screamed Edmund. “It’s 8pm!”

Richard just stood there, staring at his brother. “Excuse me? I don’t answer to you,” Richard replied, annoyed.

“Oh really? Where were you?” Edmund asked haughtily.

Richard glanced at Francis, who was still sitting in the recliner, and answered, “I was at school. I had work to do.”

“Work, huh? Is THAT what you’re calling it?” Edmund said nastily.

Richard was becoming angrier by the moment. “What the hell are you talking about?”

Edmund walked right up to his little brother, and said, “You were with HER, weren’t you? Why don’t you ever listen? She is nothing but trouble!”

Richard was so furious that he hit his brother. Francis was shocked. He had to step in and break up the ensuing fight.

“Enough!” Francis yelled as he pulled Richard away from his brother. “What has gotten in to you?” he asked his best friend.

“Anne is NOT trouble. She is wonderful. And it’s true – I’m falling in love with her. And yes, I know it’s dangerous. There! I said it!” Richard screamed.

Edmund just glared at his little brother. “Don’t you remember what happened the last time? I am NOT going to come to your rescue again!”

Francis had to restrain Richard from going after his brother again. “She is NOTHING like Kate! How dare you even insinuate such a thing?!”

Edmund started toward the door. He looked at Francis and said, “Try and talk some sense into your best friend. He obviously won’t listen to ME.” Edmund stormed out of the door.

Richard broke free from Francis’s grip and glared at his best friend. “What are you doing here?” Richard asked angrily.

“Edmund texted me and told me you were in trouble and needed my help. So I came. Why didn’t you tell me about this girl?” Francis asked.

“THIS is why! Edmund doesn’t understand. And apparently neither do you!” Richard screamed.

“Listen to me. This is extremely dangerous. You must know that. Do you really want to lose everything over some girl?” Francis said, hoping that Richard’s common sense would return.

Richard sighed, exasperated. “She’s not just some girl, Francis. She’s special. What I feel for her is NOTHING like I felt for Kate. It’s entirely different. I can’t explain why it happened. It just did. And she likes me, too. This could be … IT.”

Francis didn’t know what to say. He remembered all too well the mess with Kate, and he had to admit that this did seem different. “I just don’t want to see you get hurt, or ruin your career,” Francis said.

“I know. We are being extremely cautious. We’re trying to arrange a meeting schedule off campus, and no one is going to find out,” Richard said, finally calming down. “I can’t help how I feel…”

“I can’t help how I feel Veronica,” Anne said, angry and annoyed with her friend and roommate.

Anne was livid. Veronica had been snooping around in her library and found Richard’s scarf. She was holding it hostage until Anne told her the whole story.

“This can’t end well. And then where will you be?” Veronica asked. She was shocked by what Anne had told her.

Anne walked over to Veronica and grabbed Richard’s scarf. “I don’t believe you! How can you stand there and judge me when you went through my things?!” Anne screamed.

Before Veronica could respond, Anne walked right up to her friend and said, “If you say anything to anyone, I will HURT you. And don’t think I won’t!”

Anne stomped out of the kitchen and went up to her room. She slammed the door shut. She was beyond angry, but as soon as she smelled Richard’s cologne, she began to calm down.


	14. plans and schemes

Stanley was more certain than ever that something was going on between York and that girl. He’d been taking small videos of her coming and going from his office in the early evening for a few weeks now, and had also taken some of York leaving as well.

Late last week, however, things started to change. York was leaving at his normal time and the girl hadn’t been around at all. They must be meeting somewhere else, Stanley thought, disappointed.

He obviously couldn’t follow York off campus. With his luck, he’d get caught, and York would accuse him of stalking him.

 _Clarence’s job should’ve been mine. I have the experience and the knowledge. York didn’t deserve this. He should be made to wait his turn and suffer like the rest of us_ , Stanley complained to himself. _If I can only catch him and the girl …_

“This is much better,” Anne sighed, as she sat on the window seat of her library, wrapped securely in Richard’s arms. “MUCH less chance of us getting caught here.”

Richard smiled, and kissed the top of her head. He’d been there for over an hour, talking with her. “Quite true. But Veronica could come home early, and then what?”

Anne laughed. He loved her laugh. She looked up at him and said, “I threatened her. I told a few weeks ago that if she told anyone, I’d hurt her. Besides, I changed the locks on my doors. She can’t get in.”

Richard pulled away so he could look at her. “Are you serious? Did you really threaten her?” Anne looked at him, kissed him, and got up.

“Where are you going?” Richard asked as she walked over to her desk. She opened the bottom drawer, and pulled out the locked box. She walked back to Richard and set the box down in his lap.

“What’s this?” Richard asked, confused.

“Open it,” Anne said, smiling. Richard gently opened the lid to the box, and looked up at Anne.

“Is this …?” he asked.

“Yes. It’s your scarf. You must’ve dropped it when you rushed out that 1st night. Veronica found it, and was holding it hostage until I told her everything. That’s when I threatened her,” Anne said, in a deep and somewhat scary voice that Richard found captivating.

“I was wondering where I’d left it,” he said as she started to hand it back to him. “No, you can keep it. I have others.”

She looked at him mischievously. “If you wear it, it’ll smell like you again, and then you can give it back to me.”

Richard laughed and pulled her close. “You’re too funny!” he said as he leaned down to kiss her.

“Oh Richard,” Anne sighed as she kissed him. _I’m falling for him_ , she thought, as their kiss deepened.

 _Richard_ , Veronica thought. _I wonder who he is_ , she pondered as she stood outside of the library door, hearing the latter part of their conversation. Anne was still mad at her, and even though she knew she shouldn’t be listening, she couldn’t help herself.

She wanted to find out more, but she knew she couldn’t ask Anne. _He sounds older_ , Veronica thought, _but not that much older. He must be something special, though, for Anne to sneak him in and lock herself away with him …_

Francis was in the law library thinking about Richard’s situation. _If they get caught, there’s nothing that anyone will be able to do for them. They’ll both lose everything._

He knew that Edmund was right. Getting involved with a student was suicide. Francis was torn. Part of him wanted to do everything in his power to stop this before it went any further.

But Francis also knew his best friend. Richard wouldn’t risk everything for just “some” girl. Richard hadn’t acted like this when he was engaged, which told Francis that there had to be something super special about her …

 _She really is special, Richard thought_ , as she rested her head on his chest. They were just sitting in the quiet little library, enjoying each other’s company.

“Can I tell you something?” Richard said, finally interrupting the silence.

“Of course,” Anne replied, trying not to worry about what he might say.

“I have enjoyed these last few evenings immensely. Talking with you and finally getting to know you a little better has been amazing,” Richard said tenderly.

Anne looked up at him and stared into his eyes. “You really mean that, don’t you?” she asked.

“Did you think I was only interested in you because you’re pretty?” he responded.

Anne laughed. “No! That is NEVER my problem. My sister is the pretty one. I’m the smart one. It’s just that …”

 _How could she think she isn’t pretty?_ “Go ahead,” Richard said encouragingly.

Anne sighed before continuing. “Guys usually see me as the smart girl who should be grateful for any attention, and therefore easy to get into bed. And you are SO intelligent, and … well … EXTREMELY handsome, so it’s normal for me to think that.”

 _Whoever made her believe that should be brutally tortured_ , Richard thought angrily. He regarded her closely before he spoke. “What I am about to say IS the truth. When I first saw you in class, I knew you were special. And yes, I thought you were pretty. As the class progressed, I learned how smart and insightful you were. And yes, I had wanted to kiss for some time. But not because I wanted to have sex with you. I honestly liked you. And I thought that maybe you might like me, and kissing you would be a sign that maybe we could have something …”

Anne didn’t know what to say. No one had ever said anything like that to her before. She really wanted to believe that he cared for her, and part of her thought that he did. But after everything that happened with Eduard, she was very cautious.

She smiled at him warmly. “I’m sorry, I … I don’t know what to say…”

Richard lightly kissed her forehead. “I can’t be sure, but I’m guessing that someone hurt you badly, which is why you don’t fully believe me. And I’m not angry or upset or disappointed. I understand, all too well,” he said.

 _Who could’ve hurt him? He’s so wonderful_ , Anne thought. She tightened her hold on him, and sighed. “I wish we could just stay like this. It’s so quiet and peaceful here …”

Richard smiled. “I agree. Your library has the same cozy feeling that my office does.”

Anne chuckled, and replied, “Yes, but my little library is much safer. And let’s be honest, it’s also more comfy!”

Richard also laughed. “Yes, but that only makes it harder for me to leave,” he said trying to get up from the window seat.

Anne refused to let him go. “Please stay a little longer,” she gently pleaded. She really didn’t want him to go.

He sighed. He hated this part. At least when they were meeting in his office, they both left, so he didn’t feel so horrible. But leaving her, that was awful.

“I know, but it’s almost 8. And the last bus over to my side of town comes at 815. We both know I can’t be seen driving here. If we want to keep doing this, we have to be super careful,” Richard said, suddenly very serious.

Anne stood up and walked over to the desk. As she picked his coat up from the chair, she slid her green jade bracelet into the inner pocket where his keys were.

As Anne handed him the coat, she sighed. It smelled like him, too. She loved his cologne.

Richard grabbed her and hugged her tightly. “You know I’d like to stay, but I can’t …”

“I know,” Anne said sadly. “But I guess I should be grateful that we can meet here.”

Richard kissed her softly. “I’ve actually been thinking about something,” he said. “But I’m not going to say anything until I know for sure.”

Anne looked at him. When he smiled at her, she felt herself get weak again. She kissed him, quite passionately, and then said, “We’ll go out the back. I don’t want Veronica to see you if she’s home.”

Richard tried not to laugh, but couldn’t help himself. “You really are funny, you know that?”

Anne took his hand, and they walked together out the back door. She led him through the garden and out to the street. She had just enough time to kiss him once more before the bus came. As she walked back inside and up to her room, she couldn’t help but wonder what Richard was planning …

The bus stop was about two blocks away from Richard’s house. He didn’t mind. He liked these nighttime walks. It gave him a chance to cool off so he could work.

His plan was simple. He was trying to determine if Anne would consider coming to his house some evening. If she did, they wouldn’t have to worry about anyone eavesdropping on them. However, Richard living alone was also a drawback. It might make her feel uncomfortable, or pressured to do something, and he most certainly didn’t want her to feel that way.

As he was walking up the steps to the porch, he unbuttoned his coat and reached inside the pocket. There was something else in there other than his keys. Richard smiled as he pulled out the bracelet.

 _Anne_ , he sighed as he opened the door. Once he took off his coat and shoes, he went into his little office, sat down, and stared at the bracelet.

 _She wanted me to have something, like she has my scarf_ , he thought. _I really think she likes me …_

Edmund was sitting in the doctors’ lounge, unhappy as he always was on the few nights a month that he was on call at the hospital. He had wanted to rest, but he kept thinking about his little brother.

 _If Francis is right, and Richard really likes her, what the hell I am going to?_ Edmund had a bad feeling. Richard was smart, and even though he said they were being extremely careful, something almost always went wrong.

 _I need to do something. I can’t let him get hurt again,_ he thought. But he knew Richard wasn’t going to listen to him. He also knew that Richard’s brain was no longer in control of the situation. And when Richard’s heart took over, that’s usually when things derailed.

Edmund sighed, and thought, _I have no choice. I have to break them up …_


	15. thanksgiving week

Richard sighed as the last student left his office. There’d been a steady stream of them since after he finished class, and it was now 615pm.

He closed his eyes, and sat in the peaceful silence for a few minutes. He smiled, knowing that he had one last appointment at 630, and it would be, by far, the BEST meeting of the last 2 days.

Richard had given exams late last week, and some of his students hadn’t done well. So they had wanted to discuss their tests and grades with him.

One student who did exceptionally well was Anne. _I’m SO proud of her_ , he thought. She had finally figured out how to master Dr. Clarence’s tests. He laughed, as he remembered that it took him a while to get the hang of it, too.

Richard leaned back in his chair, and waited, rather impatiently, for his favorite student to arrive …

 _York is here awfully late this evening_ , Stanley thought. _But the girl hasn’t been here. Damn! I wish I could catch them_ , Stanley muttered to himself.

He heard the elevator ding, and the door opened. _It’s her!_ he thought as he grabbed his phone.

She walked down the hallway to York’s office, a huge smile on her face. She was on the phone. He could just barely hear her half of the conversation:

“I just got out of the elevator … I know, I wish Veronica wasn’t home either … We already discussed ‘that feature’ of your office …”

Stanley was so excited he nearly got caught. _BINGO!!!!_

Anne hadn’t noticed Stanley skulking near his door. She was too engrossed in her conversation with Richard and the thought of spending some time with him before the holiday.

As she shut the door behind her, she noticed the only light was coming from Richard’s desk. She smiled and said, “Mood lighting?”

Richard grinned as he walked over to her and kissed her. “I’ve been waiting all afternoon to hold you in my arms,” he said softly.

Anne took his hand and led him to the couch. He sat down next to her, and just stared into her eyes for a few moments.

As she snuggled up to him, she sighed. “I think this is the first time, ever, that I really don’t want to have break.”

“I know. I expected it to be hard, but I’m already starting to miss you,” Richard said somberly.

 _He’s really going to miss me,_ Anne thought, smiling. _He really does like me! Maybe he even … NO! You can’t be thinking this!_

“Anne?” Richard asked.

“Hmm?” she replied, coming out of her thoughts.

“I asked what you were doing, but your mind was elsewhere,” Richard said, hoping that she was thinking of him.

“Sorry. I was, uh, thinking about …” she started to say, but stopped herself. So she decided to answer his question. “My parents are meeting my sister in the city, so we’re going to have dinner there. Are you doing anything with your family?”

“My brother and I usually go up to the cabin and spend the long weekend there. And I have to go, especially since I didn’t spend fall break with him,” Richard said.

 _I’d much rather be home alone, missing you,_ he thought, but didn’t think it was wise to say aloud.

He felt her pulling away from him. Anne was looking at him, somewhat sadly. _Are you wishing that you could be with me, too? Are you sad that you won’t see me? Are you going to miss me as much as I will miss you Anne? Could you maybe, just maybe, be falling in love me?_

Anne wondered what he was thinking as he was looking back her. She smiled, and then kissed him. She sighed as he tightened his hold on her. _Is this what it feels like? Could I really be … falling in love with him?_

Richard could feel her heart pounding against his chest. _Maybe our absence will make her realize how she feels. If only we could stay like this …_

Stanley glanced at his phone. It was almost 8pm, and York was still in his office with the girl. He had walked up to the door a number of times. There were periods of quiet conversation followed by silence. _They’re probably making out,_ he thought, disgustedly. _Too bad I can’t get video them doing that. But this should be enough to get the dean’s attention. Hopefully they’ll leave soon, and together …_

The alarm on Richard’s phone went off. He pulled away from Anne, and sighed. He glanced at the clock on the wall and saw that it was 8pm. _Why did time have to go by so quickly? I just want to stay here with her,_ Richard thought sadly.

“Anne, it’s time,” he said dejectedly.

“No. I refuse to leave,” she said stubbornly. “And I know you don’t want to go either.”

He kissed her forehead, and tried to break free from her grasp. He finally managed to do so after 3 attempts. She looked so forlorn, slumped on the small couch. _This is killing me,_ he thought as he turned away from her.

Anne stood up and walked over to him. She took his hand, and laying her head against his back, she said, “I’m sorry. I just don’t want to think about the fact that I won’t be able to see you until Tuesday.”

Richard turned around, wrapping his arms around her waist. “I was thinking,” he said slowly, “that maybe we can meet Sunday night, when you get back. I was thinking … that we could, uhm, meet at … my house …”

Anne knew that if she looked at him, the look on her face would reveal her feelings. She wasn’t sure if she was ready for that yet.

“As inviting as that sounds, I’m not coming back until Monday morning. My professor cancelled my 10am class, so I don’t have to be here until 115pm,” she said, hoping that he wouldn’t be too mad.

Richard smiled, wondering how true that really was. He knew she was still unsure about her own feelings, and going to his place might be too much. “That’s all right. But you will need to let me know where we’re going to meet,” Richard said calmly, as if he wasn’t disappointed.

“I promise, when I get back and talk with Veronica, I’ll email you,” Anne replied, relieved that he didn’t sound too upset.

Richard pulled away slightly, and lifted her chin up so she was looking at him. She smiled at him, making his pulse race. As they kissed, he truly hoped that this holiday break would make her realize how much he cared for and that he wanted to be with her.

Anne was nearly breathless as she broke away from Richard. She walked over to the chair and started putting on her coat. She stopped, and said, “By the way, how did I do on my test?”

Richard burst out laughing. “Oh my god! I completely forgot!” He returned to his desk and retrieved her exam from the pile. He was beaming with pride as he handed it to her. He couldn’t wait to see her reaction.

Anne shrieked. “92?! Seriously?!” She looked at him, and her smile widened. “I did this all on my own, didn’t I?” she asked, still a bit stunned.

“Yes, you did. I knew eventually you’d figure out how his tests worked,” Richard said happily.

Anne looked at him curiously. “These are Dr. Clarence’s tests? I thought they were yours,” she said.

Richard shook his head as he finished putting his coat on. “Nope. I’m following his syllabus, and teaching as closely to his style as I can. Using his tests seemed like the best method to evaluate everyone.”

Anne couldn’t help but be impressed. He wanted them to get the closest thing to Dr. Clarence’s teaching as possible. She truly admired him. _Oh God! I AM falling for him, and not just because he’s so handsome,_ she thought.

“Are you ready?” Richard asked. Anne nodded, and they walked to the door.

He opened the door slowly, and peeked out. _No one there,_ he thought. Richard looked back at Anne, smiled, and took her hand. “No one in sight. Let’s go!”

Stanley had his phone just barely past the doorframe. He was grinning from ear to ear as he videotaped York and the girl walking to the elevator, their arms wrapped around each other.

 _Finally! I have definitive proof that he’s involved with his student! When we get back from break, I’m going to see Dean Stafford,_ Stanley thought, suddenly overjoyed that all his late nights in the office had finally paid off.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Anne sat on the window seat in her library, with just some candles lit. She was alone – Veronica had already left for the holiday. She was glad, too, because she was SO confused.

“Oh God! What is happening to me?” she said out loud, as there was no one to hear her. Anne got up from the window seat and started walking around the library, Richard’s scarf, newly returned, in her arms.

“I’m so scared,” she said to the emptiness. “I know he likes me. He may even be falling in love with me. And I like him, a lot …”

She stopped and sat in the chair, smelling his scarf. She smiled. “He’s truly a great guy. He’s smart, caring, very driven, devastatingly gorgeous,” she continued. “And such a great kisser!”

Anne stood up and resuming walking. “Richard hasn’t pressured me into doing anything. He’s been fair in class, and … and …”

She was scared to say it out loud, even in the empty house. “And I think I’m falling in love with him …”

“… I’m in love with her,” Richard said out loud, as he was pacing in the living room yet again. He looked at the clock on the wall – he’d been repeating this same sentence for nearly 40 minutes.

“Anne is terrific. She’s intelligent, pretty, caring, studious, focused … and her lips are so soft …” he said, falling into the recliner.

He was going to be utterly miserable this weekend, and he knew that Edmund was going to lecture him about it.

Just then, Richard’s phone rang. He reached over to the coffee table. _ANNE!!!_

“Hello there,” he said cheerfully as he answered the phone.

“Hi. Am I interrupting you?” Anne asked.

Richard laughed.  “No, but the carpet is glad that you called!”

Anne looked at her phone, as she thought she heard wrong. “Did you just say the carpet is glad I called?”

He laughed again. She really was funny. “Yeah, I was … well, pacing in the living room again.” He wondered what she’d say.

It was Anne’s turn to laugh. “So you’ve been having as good of a night as I’ve been having,” she sighed.

“It sure seems that way,” Richard said not sure if he felt better or worse. “So … what’s up?” he asked.

Anne was suddenly scared. It was impulsive to call him, and she really wanted to talk with him, but now she didn’t know if she could.

“Anne? Are you still there? Are you ok? Anne?” Richard asked, concerned.

“Sorry. I … I …” Anne mumbled. She couldn’t make the words come out.

Richard was now very worried. “Anne? It’s ok. Just talk to me,” Richard pleaded.

Anne took a deep breath, and began. “I have been trying to figure all of this out. Richard, I like you. I like you a lot. And this weekend is going to be awful without you. But I also need to tell you that I’m scared. You were right. Someone did hurt me, very badly, and I’m just ... I’m …” Anne tried but she couldn’t finish.

Richard’s heart was breaking. He wanted to take her in his arms, and hold her, and tell her that it would be ok. “Anne …” he said, unsure of exactly what to say.

“I just want you to know that I’ll understand if you don’t want to wait for me, or if you want to stop seeing me,” Anne said sadly.

“No! Anne, I … I really like you, too. And I understand how you feel. I was …” Richard really didn’t want to do this over the phone, but he thought it might help. “I was hurt, too, and it affected me just as badly. I haven’t … I haven’t dated, or even thought about dating anyone. But you …” Richard paused.

Anne continued. “You really do understand, don’t you?” Richard sighed, “Yes, I do. And Anne … I care about you, very much.”

Anne had been trying to hold back the tears, but when he said that, she couldn’t stop them. “Thank you. I … I …”

Richard could hear her crying. “I know you do Anne. Please stop crying. It’ll be ok. Maybe this break will actually help you understand things,” he said in a soothing voice.

Anne smiled as she wiped the tears off her face. He really was an amazing guy. “Thank you. I’ll email you when I get back. Good night, Richard.”

“Good night, Anne,” Richard replied, smiling, and wishing that Monday would come quickly.


	16. Richard's Thanksgiving

Edmund was very nervous. He had planned everything down to the last detail, or so he believed. They would follow their usual routine – spend the morning and early afternoon on the lake while everything was cooking, eat, and then while they were watching the game, he’d convince Richard to break up with that girl.

He knew that Richard was going to resist. So he tried to anticipate all the arguments. He even made notes. He was NOT going to fail …

Richard was already miserable. He was SO not looking forward to this weekend. He knew that he would have to listen to Edmund bad mouth Anne for the next 3 days. He also suspected that Edmund was going to try and convince him to stop seeing her.

“Maybe Anne’s bracelet will act as a talisman against Edmund,” Richard said out loud in the car. “I just need to stay as calm as possible, and if gets too bad, which it probably will, I’ll leave.”

Edmund was waiting on the porch when Richard arrived. _I’ll say nothing now, and then start tomorrow_ , Edmund thought.

“Hey little brother! Did you bring everything on the list I sent you?” he asked as Richard walked up the steps.

_I must remain calm_ , Richard thought. “No. These bags are filled with parsnips and turnips,” he replied sarcastically.

“You’re not as funny as you think,” Edmund said. “And you’d be surprised how good I could make those taste.”

Richard just shook his head. He was not in the mood for any of this. But he had to at least try. “Uh huh. You take these and I’ll get the others,” he said, handing off the bags to Edmund.

Edmund watched his brother go back to the car. _He’s already grumpy. This is going to be ugly_ , Edmund thought as he walked into the cabin.

Richard was grateful that he left town so late. He could put everything in the kitchen, take a shower, and go to bed. And that’s exactly what he did.

Edmund woke his brother up very early on Thursday morning, and they were on the boat before 7am. Richard seemed distracted. _He’s probably thinking about her_ , Edmund thought.

Richard was even more miserable this morning. He’d hardly slept at all last night. And now he was on the lake, drinking coffee, and waiting for the lecture to start. _I’d like to be watching this sunrise with Anne. We’d enjoy it_ , he thought.

Richard sighed, and said, “Well, what are you waiting for?”

Edmund hadn’t wanted to start this on the boat. He knew it’d ruin dinner as well. But, Richard was a captive at the moment. “You’re being an idiot, little brother. She’s nothing but trouble. You’re going to get caught, and fired. She’s going to get expelled. And then what are you going to do?”

Richard just looked at his oldest brother. He would always be thankful that Edmund saved him after Kate destroyed his life. But this was different. He didn’t know Anne. He didn’t even want to know her. And that was unacceptable.

“I’m going to say this as calmly and plainly as I can. Anne is NOT Kate. She is nothing like her. But you don’t care about that. I know this is dangerous. I’m falling in love with her. And there is NOTHING that you are going to say or do to change my mind. So you can either drop it, or after dinner I’m going back to town,” Richard stated.

Edmund had anticipated this, but looking at his brother, he really didn’t know where to begin. So he just started.

“She’s a student. She’ll blame all of this on you when she’s expelled. She could bring litigation against you. You won’t be able to finish your doctorate. Other universities won’t hire you. Then what?” Edmund said matter-of-factly.

Richard couldn’t disagree with him on any of those points. “I don’t disagree,” Richard said. “But I can’t just stop being her professor. And I most definitely can’t stop loving her. We’ve been extremely careful. We haven’t been seen together outside of class, we haven’t been together at all in public, and I don’t drive to her house. Unless someone is stalking us, we’re fine. Besides, there’s only a few more weeks left in the semester, and she’s already decided not to take my Tudor class next semester,” Richard explained calmly.

“You’ve been to her house?” Edmund asked, surprised. Now he was getting angry. “Are you sleeping with her, too? Is that why you’re so adamant about not breaking up with her? This is EXACTLY how it was with Kate!” Edmund screamed.

“You are damn lucky that we’re on a boat,” Richard snarled. “And not that it’s any of your business, but we are NOT sleeping together. I couldn’t do that to her. She’s not ready,” Richard said seething.

“But you want to! And that’s just as bad!” Edmund said, the anger evident in his voice. “And how can you be sure that no one has seen or heard you? You can’t!”

Richard glared at his brother. “I’m not stupid. I have taken every precaution I can think of, and then some. Anne is being just as careful. She doesn’t want to get caught any more than I do,” Richard said, trying his best not to yell.

Edmund just shook his head. “I never said you were stupid. You’re just not using your brain. You’re letting your heart dictate your actions, and it’s going to get you trouble,” Edmund said, annoyed. “And how can you think that she likes you? She’s probably just after a good grade.”

Richard clenched his left fist so tightly that his knuckles were white. He was enraged. But he couldn’t respond on the boat. So he grabbed the oars and started rowing back to shore.

“What are you doing? We’ve only been out here an hour!” Edmund screamed trying to take the oars from his little brother.

“You can either let me row us back to the dock so I can leave, or I will jump out of this boat and swim back,” Richard said in a deep and evil voice that Edmund had never heard before.

Edmund was shocked. It was as if someone else was sitting in the boat with him. He didn’t know what to do. “Richard, please …”

“Unless you are going to apologize and stop trying to make me break up with Anne, then you had better shut your mouth,” Richard growled in the same dark voice.

Edmund just sat there and let his little brother row them back to the dock. It didn’t take very long given how angry Richard was. _This is definitely NOT how I expected this to go_ , Edmund thought. _This may not have been the best plan …_

After Richard secured the boat, he got out and walked immediately up to the cabin. He was so furious with his brother. _I can’t believe he won’t even TRY to understand how I feel,_ Richard thought angrily.

He went straight upstairs to get his things. When he came back down, Edmund was standing in the living room.

“Before you leave, let me say one more thing,” Edmund pleaded.

Richard sighed, and tightened his grip on Anne’s bracelet, safely concealed in his pocket. “Fine. What?”

Edmund knew this was last chance, so he chose his words very carefully.

“I know you like her. I know you think she likes you too. And I know that you believe that you’re safe. But Richard, nothing is ever completely safe. If something does go wrong, no one is going to be able to fix things. You’re career, and everything that you’ve worked so hard for will cease to exist. And it will all be because of a girl that you don’t even know that well. I love you. And I’m just trying to protect you.”

Richard just stood there, staring at his brother. Deep down, he knew that Edmund’s logic was sound. But he also knew that he was in love with Anne, and he couldn’t change that. And honestly, he didn’t want to, either.

Richard started walking toward the door.

“That’s it? You’re not going to say anything? You’re just going to leave?” Edmund asked.

Richard stopped, but didn’t turn around. “I know you love me. But you don’t care about how I feel, or even how Anne might feel. I thought you, of all people, would want me to finally be happy. I guess I was wrong.” He then left.

As Richard was walking down the porch steps, he heard the door open, and Edmund yelling for him to come back. Richard ignored him, and got into his car.

Once he got closer to town, he started to feel less angry.

When he arrived home, he sat down in the recliner and sighed. “I knew it was going to bad, but wow,” he said out loud in the empty house. “I still can’t believe that Edmund wouldn’t even listen to what I had to say …”

Richard gently took Anne’s bracelet out of his pocket, and rubbed his fingers over. He then looked at his phone, sitting on the table.

“Oh Anne …” he sighed. “I wish I could call you. I wish that I could talk to you. Hearing your voice would make me feel SO much better …”

Richard shook his head. He knew very well that he couldn’t call her, or even text her. That would not be smart. But emailing her …

_Anne. I hope you’re enjoying the holiday with your family. I’ll talk to you when you get back. Affectionately, Richard._

What Richard really wanted to say was that he missed her terribly, and that he loved her, but he couldn’t. He wouldn’t do that to her.

As he walked outside and sat on the swing, with Anne’s bracelet still in his hand, he sincerely wished that she was having a better Thanksgiving than he was …


	17. Anne's Thanksgiving

Anne had arrived at Isabel’s apartment in the city on Wednesday night. She was miserable. She spent the entire train ride thinking about Richard. _Oh Richard_ , she thought, _I hope you’re going to enjoy your holiday more than I will. I SO don’t want to be here …_

She was already in bed, watching TV. Isabel had wanted to talk, but Anne said that she was tired, and she knew that her sister would wake her up early to watch the parade. It had been their special tradition since they were little girls.

Anne also suspected that Isabel would want to talk about Richard, and she just couldn’t handle that. She needed to figure this out on her own. As she fell asleep, she was still thinking about him …

Sure enough, Isabel burst into Anne’s room early on Thursday morning and dragged her into the living room. There was a tray with orange juice, croissants and strawberry jam – another of their sisterly traditions.

Anne tried very hard to be excited, and played along as best she could with Isabel. They watched the parade, and then Anne went to get ready. _I really just want to go home_ , Anne thought wearily. _I miss him …_

“Annie? Are you ready? We need to leave!” Isabel shouted from the living room.

Anne looked at herself in the mirror, and thought sadly, _I wish Richard were here, or better yet, I wish I was with him …_

As she walked out of her room, Isabel sighed. “I can’t believe it took you that long to get ready! We’re going to be late,” she said, slightly annoyed.

Anne said nothing as she put on her coat, but did manage to smile as she smelled Richard’s cologne on his scarf.

“What are you smiling about? Mom is going to yell at us when we get there,” Isabel said.

Anne replied, “You can blame it all on me, Izzy. Let’s go.”

Anne sighed as they walked into the restaurant. She needed to put on a brave face for her parents. They couldn’t suspect that something was bothering her. _The sooner we eat, the sooner we can leave, and the sooner I can go back to school …to Richard_ , Anne thought.

“You’re late. You’d think that you could be on time for this dinner,” their mother said in a somewhat harsh tone.

“It’s all Annie’s fault, mother,” Isabel replied, glaring at her little sister.

Richard Neville stood up, smiled at Isabel, and immediately went to hug Anne. “Don’t listen to your mother. Happy Thanksgiving, Annie,” he said cheerfully. “Happy Thanksgiving to you too, Daddy,” Anne said, giving her father a peck on the cheek before sitting down.

Anne was grateful that Isabel dictated the conversation. She only had to answer a few general questions about school, and the new house, and that was it.

Her father, however, knew something wasn’t quite right. Anne was unusually quiet, and she didn’t seem like herself. _Something must be bothering her_ , he thought.

After what seemed like an eternity, dinner was finally over. Anne hugged her mother, and then started towards the door. “Anne, honey, can I talk to you for a moment before you leave?” her father asked.

 _Oh no_ , Anne thought. She nodded, and went outside with her father.

“Honey, what’s wrong? You’re not yourself,” Richard Neville asked concerned.

 _Well, Dad, I think I’m in love with my professor_ , she thought, but knew THAT was not an appropriate answer. “I just have a lot of work to do, and I’m tired, since Izzy woke me up so early this morning,” Anne replied, hoping that her father would be satisfied with that answer.

“Well, if you want to go back early, just buy yourself another ticket. I’ll pay for it,” her father said, smiling at her.

Anne hugged her father tightly. “Thanks. I love you Daddy,” she said, as her sister and mother exited the restaurant.

“Call me when you get back to school, ok?” her father said, as he began to the car.

“I will! Love you!” Anne shouted as she walked to the subway with her sister.

When they returned to Isabel’s apartment, the lecture started.

“Thanks a lot Annie, that was fun. I SO enjoy listening to mom berate us for not being punctual. And you said nearly nothing at dinner! I had to do all the talking!” Isabel shouted.

Anne just sighed as she sat there on the couch, still wearing Richard’s scarf. It was the only thing keeping her calm at the moment.

“This is because of HIM, isn’t it?” Isabel asked, annoyed.

“Izzy, please. I really don’t want to talk about this,” Anne said tiredly. “I need to pack my things. I’m going back to school tomorrow morning.”

“You’re what? You can’t go back tomorrow! I have the whole weekend planned – shopping, the clubs, more shopping, and even a museum, because you like that dull sort of thing!” Isabel said angrily.

Anne sighed. Her sister didn’t really know her at all. “Izzy, I don’t like going to the clubs, and shopping with you is awful. Plus, I have a lot of schoolwork to do …”

“I don’t believe you! I rearranged my entire schedule just for you! You’re going to meet HIM, aren’t you? Aren’t you?!” Isabel screamed at her little sister.

“No, Izzy, I’m not. He’s not even there. He’s spending the holiday with his brother,” Anne said as she starting to get angry with her sister.

“Liar! I bet he’s meeting you at your house. Or maybe you’re going to his house. I hope you’re at least being careful,” Isabel said sarcastically.

Anne couldn’t stay calm any longer. “What part of what I just said don’t you understand, Izzy? HE’S NOT IN TOWN! AND I’M NOT MEETING HIM ANYWHERE!”

Isabel just glared at her sister. “How dare you yell at me?! I am your older sister! I’m just trying to make you understand!”

Anne was furious now. “Understand what? That Richard is my professor and that I have feelings for him? That we have to meet secretly because it’s dangerous? That he actually likes me for who and what I am?”

Isabel was stunned. She knew that Annie liked him, but if she had feelings for him, that was infinitely worse. “Annie! How could you have feelings for him?” she asked. “Oh my god! You’ve slept with him!”

That was the last straw. Annie walked right up to her sister and slapped her across the face. “You have NO right to say that to me! You don’t even know Richard! And not that it’s any of your business, but we have NOT slept together!” Anne shouted.

“You bitch!” Isabel screamed. “I’m only trying to save you from another disaster and THIS is how you treat me?! He’s going to ruin your life! And when he does, don’t you dare come running back to me to help you!”

“Help me!” Anne cried. “You didn’t help me! I begged you not to tell mom and dad about Eduard, and that’s exactly what you did! You made everything worse!” Anne yelled as she strode into the bedroom.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Isabel asked angrily as she followed Anne.

“What does it look like I’m doing? I’m packing my things and leaving,” Anne replied nastily as she worked.

When she was done, she walked back up to sister, and said in that same deep, scary voice that Richard had heard, “IF YOU SAY A WORD ABOUT RICHARD TO MOM OR DAD, I WILL HURT YOU. THAT SLAP WILL BE NOTHING COMPARED TO WHAT I WILL DO TO YOU.”

Isabel just looked at her little sister. She had never heard Annie speak like that. The look in Annie’s eyes revealed just how serious she was. Isabel was more than a little scared. “Fine. But you won’t be able to get a train now. You should call the station, though, to reserve a seat for the early train,” Isabel said timidly. “And I promise I’ll leave you alone until the morning.”

“Fine,” Anne snarled, as she retrieved her laptop from her bag. Isabel was still standing in the room. “Is there something else?”

Isabel took a deep breath. “Annie, I’m sorry. It’s just that I’m the big sister. I’m supposed to protect you. And what you’re doing is very dangerous. If you get caught, you’ll lose everything that you’ve worked so hard for …”

Anne sighed, and said, “I know. But I can’t help how I feel. And honestly, I don’t think I want to change that. Besides, I know that he cares for me, too. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight, Annie,” Isabel said quietly before leaving.

After she called the train station and changed her ticket, Anne turned on her laptop, and put Richard’s scarf back on. She began to calm down as she smelled his cologne.

And then she smiled. He sent me an email! Anne read it over and over for about 10 minutes before she responded.

_Richard, you have no idea how happy your message made me. I had a big fight with my sister, and I’m coming back tomorrow. If you still want to meet with me on Sunday night, call me when you get home. I miss you, Anne._


	18. thanksgiving weekend, part 1 -- redux

When Richard awoke on Friday morning, he was feeling a little better. He was still angry with his brother, but he had calmed down.

He checked his phone and saw 6 texts from Edmund. Each message was more of an apology than the previous one. Deep down, Richard knew that all of his brother’s arguments were logical. But he couldn’t help how he felt about Anne.

_Anne_ , he thought as a smile formed on his lips. _I hope her holiday is going well._

Richard walked out into the living room, and into his little office. He disconnected his tablet from its charger, and went into the kitchen.

Richard sighed, remembering that he had very little food left. _This wouldn’t even be an issue if Edmund hadn’t ruined Thanksgiving,_ Richard thought glumly. Before he put the milk in his cereal, Richard returned to the bedroom to get Anne’s bracelet. He smiled again as he picked it up and held it.

As he began to eat, he turned on his tablet, and followed his usual morning routine. Richard checked the weather, then the news, and finally his email.

He nearly choked when he saw there was an email from Anne. Richard couldn’t believe what he was reading. He was so happy that she was back and that she missed him! But then the fear set in. What if the fight had been about him? What if Anne had decided to stop seeing him?

“Stop it!” Richard screamed out loud as he threw the spoon into the bowl, almost splashing milk on his tablet. “Don’t get ahead of yourself!”

He stood up and took a deep breath. Richard looked at the clock – 10:30am. He slowly walked back into his bedroom and got his phone. After taking one more deep breath, he called Anne.

“Agh! Who is calling me?” Anne yelled as she walked in the door. She hurried to dig the phone out of her bag. She didn’t even check to see who it was before she answered. “Hello?” Anne said, slightly out of breath.

“Anne? Are you all right?” Richard asked, suddenly concerned.

_OH MY GOD!!_ Anne thought. “Richard!” she said happily. “Sorry! I literally just walked in the door.”

Richard sighed, relieved, as the smile reappeared on his face. “You’re back early,” he said, hoping he didn’t sound too eager.

“Yeah. I couldn’t stay there, not that I wanted to anyway. So I came back early,” Anne said as calmly as she could. “I’m, uh, surprised that you’re calling me. Did your brother leave you alone for a while?”

Richard sighed. _I should just tell her the truth,_ he thought. “Well … I had a monstrous fight with my brother. So I left, yesterday.”

Anne was stunned, and now she was starting to worry. Had the fight been about her? What if …

“Anne? Are you still there?” Richard asked.

“Yeah. I’m sorry,” she said sadly.

“Why are you sorry?” Richard asked. “You were fighting about me, weren’t you?” Anne said, trying not to cry.

Richard had a bad feeling about where this conversation was going, so he decided to change the subject. “So, since we’re both back, would you maybe like to meet tonight, instead of Sunday?” he asked nervously.

Anne sighed. He had purposely changed the subject. _This can’t be good,_ Anne thought, becoming more upset. “Sure,” she replied sullenly.

Richard could hear how upset she was, and it was upsetting him, too. _She probably thinks I want to break it off._ “I was thinking … that we, uh, could maybe …”

“Yes?” she asked, suddenly a little hopeful.

“There’s a nice park down the street from where I live. If I give you the directions … maybe you could meet me there? We could go for a nice walk, and then … um, dinner?” Richard asked awkwardly.

Anne smiled. “Richard! Are you …?”

“Am I what, Anne?” Richard asked, praying that she said yes.

“Are you … asking me out … on a date?” Anne said incredulously.

Richard laughed, which caused her to laugh too. “Yes, I believe I am.”

Anne giggled. She felt like a teenager being asked out on her first date. She also sensed Richard was nervous. “Well then, I do believe that I am saying yes,” she replied, feeling better. “What time should I be there?”

Richard knew he shouldn’t, but he did it anyway. “How soon can you get the bus?”

Anne glanced at the clock. “I’ll be there in 35-40 minutes! But only if I go now! Bye!”

“I’ll see you soon!” Richard said shortly before she hung the phone. _Damn,_ Richard thought, _I gotta hurry up!_

After he texted her the directions, he quickly washed the breakfast dishes, ran the vacuum and straightened up his bedroom. He checked the clock before he jumped in the shower, making sure that he had enough time to get ready.

Anne had arrived at the park quicker than she had anticipated. She didn’t mind, though, as she had a few minutes to collect her thoughts. _I need to be honest with him,_ Anne thought, _I need to tell him …_

Richard saw her sitting on the bench as he drove up. He stopped, and motioned for her to get in.

“Hi!” Anne said, leaning over to give him an unexpected kiss on the cheek.

“That’s the best ‘Hi’ I’ve ever gotten,” _Richard_ said, smiling at her. “And just for the record, I missed you, too.”

She blushed as she smiled back, and said, “Are we going somewhere else?”

“We’re going to the far side of the park. It’s more secluded, and there’s a parking lot, so you won’t have to carry your bag,” Richard replied.

_So he DID notice that I have my school bag and not a purse,_ she thought. _I wonder why he thinks I brought it..._

After he parked the car, Richard got out and opened Anne’s door. As she took his hand, he felt that familiar spark, and smiled. “Why are you smiling?” Anne asked curiously.

Richard laughed, and, still holding her hand, said, “Every time we touch, I feel this … spark. I’ve … I’ve never experienced that before.”

“And you think I’m funny,” Anne replied, giggling.

“Come on. It’s a gorgeous fall day. Let’s go for a nice, long walk,” Richard said as he led her into the park.

They spent hours walking in the park. Richard happily listened as she talked about her family, and why she was interested in history. At one point, they stopped and sat on a bench under a big maple tree. Anne then asked him about why he loved history so much, and smiled as it was her turn to listen to Richard.

Finally Richard said, “I don’t know about you, but I’m getting hungry. How about we go to the market and get something to make for dinner?”

Anne burst out laughing.

“You find my hunger amusing?” Richard asked, smiling at her. “Or would you rather go out to eat?”

Anne kissed him, and said, “I think that’s a great idea, but I’m a horrible cook! I can only make sandwiches and salads,” she replied, taking his hand.

Richard chuckled. “I can’t say I’m much better, but I can make a few things,” he replied as he opened the car door for her.

Richard drove them to the little market. Anne was very impressed as he picked up what they needed rather efficiently.

When they arrived at his house, Anne found herself increasingly curious. _I bet it’s really clean and very organized, just like him,_ she thought. Remembering what Richard had done at her house, she took off her shoes as soon as she got in the door.

Richard watched her, and smiled. _She remembered_ , he thought.

They went into the kitchen, and Richard began preparing dinner. Richard showed Anne where everything was, and she set the table.

Anne sighed, saying, “I’m sorry. I’m so useless in the kitchen.”

Richard immediately stopped and hugged her. “You are NOT useless. You set the table, and you’re keeping me company. And there’s not really much to do.”

Anne looked at him and smiled. _He really is a terrific guy. I’ll talk with him after dinner …_

“Anne?” Richard said, noticing that she was daydreaming. “It’s ready.”

Anne brought the bread and grated cheese to the table as Richard brought the plates. “It smells delicious!” she said as they sat down.

“I hope it tastes that good,” Richard said.

As they ate, they continued talking. They talked about school, and their career plans. They were each impressed by the other.

Anne sighed, stuffed. “That was really good!” she said, honestly.

Richard smiled. “You’re funny. It was nothing special,” he replied, starting to clear the table.

As Anne joined him, she said, “It WAS special. You made it for … for us.”

He turned to look at her. _She is so pretty, and honest, and sweet, and I really just want to …_

“Richard?” Anne asked, as he was staring at her.

_Get your mind out of the gutter! That’s not why she’s here,_ Richard scolded himself. “Sorry. Did you say something?” he asked.

Anne smiled at him. _I wonder if he’s thinking about what I’m thinking about. And I really shouldn’t be thinking about THAT,_ she cautioned herself. “I’d like the grand tour now.”

Richard laughed. His house was fairly small, and not very interesting. But he indulged her, and showed her around. As he did, he found himself answering all sorts of questions, especially about his family.

He found it sweet that she loved all the books in his little office. Richard then had an idea.

“Richard? What are you doing?” Anne asked, as she watched him get their shoes and grab a big blanket off the couch. He took her hand, and led her outside into the backyard.

“Oh wow! I love swings like this!” Anne cried.

Richard smiled, sat down, and extended his hand to her. Anne readily accepted it, and curled up next to him. He wrapped the blanket around them, and gently started to rock.

They sat there, enjoying the quietness of the evening, and watched the stars appear in late November sky.

_I should talk with him now,_ Anne thought. _Maybe it’ll actually be ok …_

Richard was also thinking about something. _I need to talk to her. I need to tell her how I feel …_

“Richard?” she said, looking up at him.

“Hmm …” he replied, looking down at her.

They stared into each other’s eyes for a moment, and then it all exploded…


	19. thanksgiving weekend, part 2

Anne woke up, smiling. She had been dreaming about Richard. Richard, she thought. She glanced over at the clock – noon. _No wonder why I’m hungry!_ She smiled again as she thought about them making love earlier … she loved the way he would look at her while she was on top, how he would kiss her breasts and caress her hips …

Anne sighed. _I really think I’m in love with him!_

“Good morning,” Richard said drowsily as he kissed the top of her head.

“Good afternoon,” Anne corrected, propping herself up so that she could kiss him. Richard smiled as he looked at her.

“Now THIS is a nice way to wake up,” he said, holding Anne tighter.

She sighed, and said, “Indeed it is. But …”

“But what?” Richard asked.

Anne smiled at him and replied, “I’m hungry.”

Richard burst out laughing. “Me too! But there really isn’t much. I hadn’t anticipated being here all weekend, so I’ll need to go to the market.”

Anne held him close. As hungry as she was, she didn’t want him to leave. She wanted to talk to him. She needed to tell him everything – he deserved to know why she was so scared.

Anne kissed him again, pulled the top blanket off the bed and wrapped it around her. She looked at him, walked to the armchair in the corner of the room, and sat down.

“Anne? Are you all right?” Richard asked, sitting up.

Anne smiled. He already looked concerned. No one had ever looked at her that way, with such love. She sighed. “I need to tell you something.”

Richard studied her closely. She looked nervous, but determined. “Ok. I’m listening,” he replied.

Anne took a deep breath and began. “His name was Eduard. He was very popular, smart, and came from a wealthy family. When he asked me out, I was really surprised. He was nice, treated me well. I actually thought that I was falling in love him.” Anne paused, and looked down.

Richard had a bad feeling about this story, but he decided not to say anything until she was finished.

As Anne continued, her voice became timid. “Then things started to change. He would yell at me and berate me for no reason. He’d tell me I was boring, ugly, stupid, and useless. And then …”

Richard could feel his anger building. _Bastard!_ He thought, as he clenched his fist under the blankets.

“… and then he started to get rough with me. He would push me around, slap me, throw me down on the bed, and … and …” Anne’s voice trailed off.

Richard was livid now. He was about to go to her when Anne regained her voice.

“He would hold my wrists or arms down while he had sex with me. The last time was so rough I was … bruised. The next day I left, and despite my protests, my father had him arrested. He was expelled and ordered not to contact me. And thankfully, he hasn’t,” Anne said shakily.

Richard’s heart was aching. All he wanted to do was go over to her, hold her, and tell her that it was all right now, that he’d protect her and take care of her. But he didn’t think that she was quite finished.

Anne sighed, and looked up at him. The expression on his face was a combination of anger and despair. _He really does love me,_ she thought.

“I needed to tell you this so that you’d understand why I’m so scared and why I … why I wanted to be sure how I felt before we …”

Richard took a deep breath, and looked at Anne. He knew that she was waiting for him to say something. And so he did …

“I met Kate a few weeks after I started my doctoral studies. She was very pretty, and there was something about her that I found… addictive. She had just graduated with her MBA. Our relationship moved very quickly – too quickly in fact. But I couldn’t see it …”

 _Wow,_ thought Anne, _this is certainly NOT the response that I expected. But he’s telling me something equally personal …_

“Edmund, my older brother, he knew something wasn’t right. He tried to tell me that she wasn’t what she appeared to be. One day she mentioned that our relationship would be even better if we got married. So I proposed,” Richard said, waiting to see if Anne reacted.

 _Oh my god,_ Anne thought, _he was engaged! But I don’t have a good feeling about this …_

Richard went on. “So I got her a big ring, and I asked her when she wanted to get to married. She told me next month. When I asked her why so soon, she told me that she was pregnant.”

Anne couldn’t stop the gasp which escaped from her lips. But she could see how hard this was for him to say.

Richard sighed. “I was stunned, obviously, but for an even bigger reason. Kate and I never … I … I always wore condoms when we had sex. She’d been sleeping with someone else.”

 _That bitch!_ Anne thought angrily.

“I was so enraged that I physically threw her out of the apartment. It destroyed me. I stopped going to class, I wouldn’t go out or eat. Edmund literally beat me until I snapped out of it. I had no intention of allowing myself to even consider being in any kind of relationship. And then I met you …”

Richard said as he grabbed his robe off the bedpost and walked over to her. He knelt down in front of her and took her hand.

“You changed all that. I haven’t felt this good since before I met her. You … you are like this bright shining star that has illuminated my soul. And I want you to know that I’m scared too. And I won’t pressure you into doing anything that makes you uncomfortable. And just because I said that I love you doesn’t mean that I expect you to tell me, especially if you’re not ready. I also want you to know that I DO love you, with all my heart.”

Anne had been near tears as he finished his story, but hearing him tell her this, she couldn’t stop them. She slid off the chair and joined him on the floor.

“I … I …” Anne stammered, trying to find her words.

She smiled as he wiped the tears from her cheeks. That gave her the strength to continue.

“Thank you for telling me about her. I didn’t expect you to do that. I want you to know that I very rarely do anything that makes me feel uncomfortable. I wanted to be with you, and for as scared as I was, I wanted to … to make love to you. I knew you wouldn’t hurt me, because I knew that … that you truly cared about me,” Anne said softly.

Richard kissed her gently. “I do. And I think that you … you care about me too.”

Anne smiled. “Yes, I do. That’s why I needed to tell you about him. I wanted you to know the reason behind my hesitance. And I … I never told anyone, not even Izzy, my sister, all of the details about that night …”

Richard drew her into his arms, and just held her.

After a few minutes, she pulled away from him. “I’m still hungry, you know,” Anne said, grinning.

Richard smiled and kissed her deeply.

As they were kissing, Anne loosened the tie on his robe and let her hands wander over his chest and downward.

Richard sighed, and stood up. He then scooped Anne up his arms, and carried her back to the bed.

Anne sighed as Richard gently laid her down, and hovered over her.

“Hungry, eh?” Richard asked in that soft, deep voice that drove Anne wild.

“Richard,” she sighed as he slowly entered her …

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was nearly 2pm when Richard woke up. He and Anne had been lying in each other’s arms.

He smiled as he gently slid out of bed. He pulled the covers up over her and got dressed.

He walked into his office and wrote Anne a note, in case she woke up before he returned. Richard then placed the note on his pillow, and softly closed the door.

As he was walking down the sidewalk to his car, he saw Francis pulling up. _This is not good_ , Richard thought. _Edmund must’ve called him_.

“Hey buddy! Where you off to?” Francis asked. He was surprised that his friend looked so well after what Edmund had told him.

“Francis, I can’t talk to you. I’ll call you later,” Richard said as he opened his car door.

“Wait! Edmund told me happened. Are you ok?” Francis asked, concerned.

Richard sighed. “I have to go to the market. If you want to come with me and talk, fine. But once we get back, you HAVE to leave.”

Francis had a bad feeling about this. _Holy crap_ , he thought, _she’s there!_

Francis got into the car with Richard. He decided to wait until they arrived at the market to ask Richard what was going on.

As they walked into the market, Francis asked, “She’s there, isn’t she?”

Richard sighed. This really wasn’t the time or place to have this conversation. “Yes. She’s sleeping. Since I wasn’t supposed to be here until Sunday, there’s no food in the house.”

“I can’t believe you! You told me that nothing was really going on, and now she’s ‘sleeping’ at your place? Did you …” Francis asked.

“Yes. And it was … amazing. I’ve … I’ve never felt this way before,” Richard replied as he looked at his best friend.

 _Wow_ , Francis thought, _he’s really serious. He truly loves her!_

“You really love her, don’t you?” Francis asked, looking at his friend.

Richard put his hand on Francis’s shoulder, and replied, “Yes. I do. And don’t bother wasting your time trying to convince me otherwise.”

Francis regarded his friend as they continued to the checkout. As much as Edmund had tried to persuade Francis to do just that, he couldn’t. He could plainly see how much Richard cared about this girl. So he decided to be his friend.

“I will admit that is exactly what Edmund wanted to me do,” Francis said, pausing, “But I can’t. I can tell how much you care about her … Anne. I haven’t seen you this happy since … well, you know. But I wouldn’t be any kind of a friend if I didn’t warn you about how dangerous this is.”

Richard smiled at his best friend as he paid the cashier. _At least HE cares about me,_ Richard thought.

“You have NO idea how much it means to me to hear you say that,” Richard said as they left the market. “Edmund wouldn’t even listen to me. And neither would Anne’s sister. That’s why she came back early.”

“I just want to you understand that this could end very badly for both of you if you get caught. And I don’t want you to get hurt again,” Francis said as they drove back to Richard’s house.

“I know,” Richard answered, “And we’re being as extremely careful. But you really do have to leave.”

Francis smiled. It was pretty obvious that Richard was in love, and wanted to be alone with her. “Only if you promise to introduce me to Anne, and soon. I promise I’ll behave!” Francis said as they got out of the car.

Richard smiled. “Yes. I’ll call you,” Richard said as he walked back up the sidewalk.

Francis smiled as he watched Richard go back into the house. He really was happy for his friend, despite the enormous risk …

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Anne woke up and rolled over. At first she was scared because Richard wasn’t there. But then she saw the note, and read it – _Anne, I went to the market. I’ll be back soon. Make yourself at home. Richard._

He had drawn a little heart next to his name. _He’s so sweet,_ Anne thought as she got out of bed. She took a quick shower, and got dressed.

As she was finishing, she heard the front door.

“I hope you got lots – I’m starving!” Anne said as she walked into the living room.

Richard smiled as she approached him. She was dressed in blue velour jumpsuit, but had left her hair down. _I really am in love,_ he thought.

He sighed as Anne wrapped her arms around him.

“I’m serious, you know,” she said as she looked up at him.

He kissed her softly, and smiled. “I know. And I did. I, too, am quite famished. But …”

“But what?” Anne asked as she followed him into the kitchen.

Anne burst out laughing as she saw what Richard bought – sourdough rolls, 2 cheeses, ham, salami, and roast beef.

“So I guess I’m making lunch?” she asked, still laughing.

“Absolutely! But don’t worry, I’ll make dinner for us,” he replied, kissing her on the cheek as she started preparing their meal.

As they ate, they continued to talk.

When they were finished, they returned to the old fashioned swing outside.

“I need to interrupt this wonderful day we’re having,” Richard said solemnly.

“I know,” Anne replied. “Everything is different now.”

“Yes, it is. We need to be extra vigilant. As ugly as it will be, I think we should only meet on the weekends. We shouldn’t tempt fate any more than necessary,” Richard said seriously.

“I agree. We can email, text, even talk. And maybe I should come here. No snooping, eavesdropping roommate like there is at my place,” Anne responded.

Richard smiled, and kissed her forehead. “That is part of the reason why I … I love you. You’re very intuitive, and equally intelligent.”

Anne smiled as she stood up, taking Richard’s hand. “I’m kind of chilly. Can you warm me up?” she asked mischievously as she led them back into the house.

Richard sighed. He loved how she was no longer afraid to take the lead.

As they returned to the bedroom, he pulled her close. “Anne?” he whispered.

“Yes?” she said quietly.

“I do love you. Our being together, like this, is a bonus,” Richard said tenderly.

Anne pulled away from and looked up at him. “I know. And I … I …”

As Richard leaned down to kiss her, he whispered, “I know Anne. I know …”


	20. the aftermath -- part 1

Sunday had been wonderful. Richard and Anne had gone for a walk in the park. Then, after receiving Anne’s permission, Francis came over and had an early dinner with them.

Richard was happy that Francis liked her. He was also glad that Anne liked Francis. It was nice to finally have someone on their side.

After Francis left, they returned to bed. They made love one last time before he walked her to the bus stop.

Richard had hated saying goodbye to her. His heart ached to see her near tears. But they both knew it had to be this way.

When he returned to his house, he heard his phone beeping. Someone had left him a voicemail. Richard smiled, thinking it was Anne.

It was the dean, and his message sounded dire. He asked Richard if he could meet at his home tomorrow night.

“Oh God,” Richard said to the empty house, “I bet it’s about Dr. Clarence.” Richard sighed sadly as he went into his little office, and began preparing for the week ahead.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean Stafford sat in his office, contemplating what he was going to do. He knew what he WANTED to do, what he SHOULD do, and what he would most likely BE FORCED to do.

The more he thought about the entire thing, the more annoyed he became … with Professor Stanley. He sighed as he reviewed the events from the previous day …

“Dean Stafford,” Stanley said as the dean opened the door, “Thank you for allowing me to meet with you this evening.”

The dean sighed – he didn’t like Stanley, at all. But sadly, Stanley had tenure, and there was very little that he could do about it.

The dean led him into his office, and offered Stanley a seat. He sighed. “This better be important.”

Stanley smiled evilly at the dean. “Oh, it is. I have something that you need to see.”

The dean sighed again. “Well? What is it?” he asked impatiently.

Stanley handed him a thumb drive. “I suspected something like this might be happening, so I started watching. And I was right.”

The dean glared at him. “You were spying on someone? And then you took video without their permission? They could bring legal action against you!” the dean yelled.

“I doubt that,” Stanley responded smugly. “They’re the ones in trouble, NOT me.”

The dean put the drive in his laptop and opened its only file. He watched calmly, not revealing anything. When the video finished, he looked at Stanley. The professor was grinning from ear to ear.

“Scandalous, isn’t it? That video is grounds for his dismissal and maybe her expulsion. Just let me know when I’ll be taking over,” Stanley said haughtily.

Dean Stafford just sat there. _You slimy asshole_ , Stafford thought, _you’d do anything to get Clarence’s job_.

Stafford took a deep breath before speaking. “This evidence needs to be reviewed by the people involved, as well as the provost, the president, and the judicial affairs committee. There are only 2 ½ weeks left in the semester. I doubt anything will be decided until break.”

Stanley was now seething. “The end of the semester?! But York is sleeping with his student!” he shouted.

Stafford’s tolerance was nearly finished. “May I remind you that you recorded them illegally? You also can’t see their faces, so she may NOT be a student of his. And the only evidence you have is them holding hands and each other.”

Stanley stood up and leaned on the dean’s desk. “How dare you!! There is more than evidence to get that wannabe professor fired so I can have the job that’s rightfully mine!”

The dean stood up and physically pushed Stanley away from his desk. “Don’t you EVER speak to me in that tone again! I am your dean! And I make the decisions – NOT YOU! Now get out!!”

Stanley was appalled. _How dare he speak to me like this!_ Stanley turned and angrily left…

The dean sighed again. There really was no good solution to this issue. He was not looking forward to meeting with Professor York this evening …

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As he drove to the dean’s house, Richard found himself thinking about Anne. He had told her about his meeting with the dean, and they agreed to talk after he got home. He was smiling as he walked to the door.

That smile was short-lived as soon as the dean answered the door.

“Professor York, thank you for meeting me this evening. Please come in,” Dean Stafford said seriously.

Richard was beginning to worry. The dean looked even worse than when he told Richard about Dr. Clarence’s illness. As he sat down in the dean’s office, he prepared himself for the worst.

Dean Stafford regarded the young man carefully. He was certain that York had no idea what was coming.

“Before I begin, I want you to know that I am most pleased with your work and everything that you’ve done this semester. I also want you to know that my hands are tied – I have virtually no choice in what I have to do,” the dean said grimly.

Richard was very confused. This obviously wasn’t about Dr. Clarence. “I’m sorry, sir, but I don’t understand.”

Dean Stafford sighed, pulled up the video on his laptop, and turned the computer around so Richard could watch the video.

As the video started, Richard felt his all the life drain from his body. It was him and Anne, arms wrapped around each other, leaving his office before Thanksgiving. He was utterly stunned.

As Richard watched the video horrified, the dean watched him. He was clearly shocked. Stafford was certain he didn’t know he was being filmed. He decided he should talk to his young professor before he told him of his fate.

“Richard,” the dean said, “I want you to start at the beginning. I’d like to understand what happened.”

 _Damn! He’s never called me by my 1st name before! This is beyond bad_ , Richard thought glumly.

So Richard started at the very beginning – the 1st day of this semester. He told the dean everything. When the dean asked if they’d been intimate, Richard looked him straight in the eye and told him the truth.

When Richard was finished, he sat slumped in the chair. He knew what was coming. But he also couldn’t allow Anne to be punished.

“Dean Stafford? May I say something?” Richard asked.

“Of course, but as I said, I have very little choice in what I can do,” responded the dean.

Richard sighed. “Sir, I know what this means for me. And I will accept it. But Anne only has 1 semester left before she graduates. She shouldn’t be punished because of something that I couldn’t stop.”

The dean looked at Richard. The young man was thoroughly despondent. But he had to admire him – he was more worried about the young lady than himself.

“Since you were honest with me, I’m going to be completely honest with you,” Dean Stafford began. “I despise Stanley. He’s a horrible professor, but he has tenure. Unless he does something heinous, I can’t fire him. Your situation is hopeless. You will be fired at the end of the semester, and you will be expelled from the doctoral program. However, I will argue for Miss Neville.”

Richard looked the dean, and pleaded with him. “I don’t care if you have to say that it was all my fault. Please do whatever you need to in order to ensure that she can graduate in May.”

“You really do love her, don’t you?” asked the dean.

“Dean Stafford, I knew it was wrong, and I knew if we got caught that it would be bad. But I can’t help how I feel about her. She … she’s everything to me,” Richard said honestly.

The dean sighed. “This is horrible. I wish I could something to help you. I’m going to have to speak with Miss Neville. But it would be better if you spoke with her first. If you can do so tomorrow, then I’ll meet with her on Wednesday, and we can get this over with. I truly hope that you can start over somewhere. You are so intelligent, and such a wonderful professor,” the dean said.

“Thank you, sir. And I understand that you’re only doing what you have to do. Just help Anne. I’ll email you after I’ve spoken to her,” Richard replied before leaving.

_How am I going to tell her …_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Anne was pacing in her library. She’d been waiting for Richard to call her. She could only imagine that the meeting had something to do with Dr. Clarence.

Finally her phone rang. “Hey,” she said.

“Anne ... I’m on my way over to your place. Pack a few things for tomorrow. Wait for me outside,” Richard said without pausing.

“Richard? What’s wrong?” Anne asked, suddenly very worried.

“I’ll be there in 10 minutes,” Richard said, sighing.

“Ok,” Anne replied slowly, and hung up.

 _Oh God_ , she thought, _the dean must’ve told him something horrible for him to be coming here to get me. My poor Richard …_

She quickly packed a small bag, and went outside to wait for him. She found the cold air somewhat refreshing. She smiled as she saw Richard pulling up to the curb.

Anne walked quickly to his car and got in. She leaned over to kiss him but he turned away. Now she really was worried.

“What’s wrong? What happened?” she asked again.

Richard felt his heart sinking as he turned to look at her.

Anne gasped as she looked into his eyes. He was clearly distraught, and it appeared as if he had been crying.

“I’ll tell you when we get back to the house,” he said quietly. He looked at her for a moment, sighed deeply, and then started to drive …


	21. the aftermath -- part 2

“Please Anne,” Richard pleaded, “Please stop crying. It’s ok.” Richard had never felt so helpless. She had been sobbing uncontrollably on the floor for nearly 5 minutes now.

“How the hell can you say that?” Anne screamed. “You’re losing everything because of me!”

Richard sighed. “Anne, look at me.”

She slowly raised her head, the tears still streaming down her face. “There’s nothing that you can say to make this better,” she said wearily.

He crawled over to her on the floor and wrapped her up his arms. “Anne,” he started, “You can still finish, and graduate in May.”

She looked at him, slightly confused. “But how? I … I slept with … with my professor.”

“I convinced the dean to put all the blame on me,” Richard said calmly, unable to look at her.

Anne pushed away from him and stood up. Her tears were now replaced with rage. “How could you do that?! It’s just as much my fault as it is yours! You can’t do this!” she shouted.

Richard stood up and tried to walk toward her, but she put up her hand.

“Did you honestly think that I’d let you do this?” Anne said.

“It’s the only way, Anne. We BOTH lose if you take any responsibility for what happened. At least this way, I can save you. And besides, it really is all my fault. I should’ve been able to stop this before it went anywhere …” Richard said somewhat sadly.

Anne now felt as helpless as Richard. She sighed as she returned to Richard’s arms.

“That would only be true if you forced me into this, and you most certainly did NOT do that,” Anne said, looking up at him. “I will NEVER regret being with you.”

Richard smiled adoringly at her. She really was his entire world. “I love you, Anne.”

“And I love you, Richard. We’ll figure this out,” she said as she kissed him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean Stafford wasn’t looking forward to this day at all. His first meeting of the day was with Miss Neville. That was going to unpleasant at best. And his day was only going to get worse. He also had meetings with the provost and the judicial affairs committee. _Damn Stanley and his schemes_ , the dean thought angrily.

“Dean Stafford? May I come in?”

“Yes, Miss Neville, and please close the door,” the dean replied.

 _I must remain calm_ , Anne thought as she sat down opposite the dean. “Dean Stafford? May I say something?” she asked.

“Of course,” he said.

Anne took a deep breath before continuing. “I know that Richard … Professor York … **Richard** … took all the blame to ensure that I could graduate, but we are both to blame. And I know that my telling you this won’t make much difference, but I want you to know that he DID try to stop all of this, but he couldn’t any more than I could.”

She took another breath and went on. “He was very plain about saying that if we got caught, we’d both suffer the consequences. I just feel badly because he’s losing everything and I’m still allowed to finish.”

Dean Stafford sighed. _She cares equally for him … this is so tragic_ , thought the dean.

“And one other thing … Richard is an amazing professor. I learned so much in his class. It was the hardest course I’ve ever had, and he not once showed me any favoritism. I did horribly at first, but it made me realize that with enough hard work, I could conquer the most difficult material. I will always be grateful to him for that,” Anne said proudly.

“Miss Neville, thank you for your honest comments. I appreciate that. I also want you to know that if it were up to me, NONE of this would be happening. It’s very obvious to me that the two of you are in love,” Dean Stafford said.

Anne blushed. _I really do love him_ , she thought.

“However, as I told Richard, it’s not my decision. I am fairly certain that you will receive an official warning for a conduct violation, but otherwise, you will be unscathed. Unfortunately, Richard will be fired at the end of the semester and released from the doctoral program,” the dean continued.

“Yes, sir. He told me,” Anne said sadly.

“What he does NOT know, however,” the dean continued, “is that I will be ensuring that when he is ready to return to graduate school that there will be very few obstacles.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t quite understand,” Anne said, confused.

“Did Richard tell you how this all happened?” the dean asked.

Anne shook her head. “He only told me that someone had seen us on campus … together.”

“Professor Stanley videotaped you leaving Richard’s office. That is ... not permitted on campus without your consent …” the dean said slowly.

Anne was in shock for a moment, and then suddenly realized why the dean had told her this.

She smiled, saying, “Thank you so much! And thank you for allowing me to graduate. Have a good day, Dean Stafford.”

The dean also smiled. “You as well, Miss Neville, and I expect that you’ll be making an appointment with me soon.”

Anne turned briefly and nodded.

The dean continued smiling, and thought, _you went after her man, Stanley, you’re in for it now_ …

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Anne took several deep breaths before making the call. She knew she had to do it, but it was going to be ugly.

“Hi Daddy! Can you talk for a minute?” she said as he answered the phone.

“Sweetheart! It’s lovely to hear your voice. But I’m surprised that you’re calling. Is everything all right?” her father asked.

“No, actually it’s not. Is there any way you can come see me tonight?” Anne asked.

Anne’s father paused for a moment, and then replied, “I can be there around 5:30. Is that ok?”

“That’s perfect. I’ll text you the address,” Anne said.

“What address? Am I not meeting you at your house?” he asked.

Anne sighed, and said, “No. My … friend is having a big problem, and, well, I’m sort of involved, but the dean gave me a way to help him.”

There was silence on the other end of the line. Anne knew she was going to have to tell him something.

“I’m listening,” was her father’s terse response.

“I don’t really want to do this over the phone …” Anne said slowly, already knowing what her father’s reply would be.

“That is wholly unacceptable, Anne. I repeat, I’m listening,” he replied, agitated.

 _Here goes nothing_ , she thought. “I met someone, and I’m in love with him. And he loves me, too. But he’s … my professor. And one of the other professors caught us leaving his office arm in arm, and brought evidence to the dean, and now he’s being fired and expelled from the doctoral program. But it’s not all his fault. I’m equally to blame. And I know it was bad judgment on my part, but I can’t help how I feel about him, and I do NOT regret anything. But he took all the blame so that I could graduate and it’s not fair. And when I went to talk to the dean today, he told me some things, and I realized what I had to do …”

Again, deafening silence on the other end of the line. Anne waited nervously for her father to say something. She was stunned when he finally did.

“He must be a truly good man for you to do this. I look forward to meeting him. So we’re going to his house, then?” her father said calmly.

Anne was so shocked by her father’s response that it took her a moment to reply. “Yes, and thank you daddy,” she said, near tears.

“I’ll see you there at 5:30. I love you, Anne.”

“I love you too, daddy,” Anne said before hanging up.

 _WOW_ , Anne thought, as she sent a text message to Francis.

_Francis, can you meet me at Richard’s house at 5:30 or as close to it as possible? And could you also call Edmund and see if he can be there, too? Thanks! Anne._

The bus to Richard’s house pulled up as she finished sending her message. As she took her seat, Anne silently prayed, _Please let this go ok. Please let my plan work. Please let all of this turn out ok for me and Richard…_


	22. The meeting

“You did what? Have you lost your mind?!” Richard said incredulously.

Anne looked at him nervously. She knew her plan was a longshot at best, but she was hoping that maybe, just maybe, with everyone’s help, they’d have a better chance.

“Anne? Anne!” Richard shouted, stunning her out of her thoughts. “Hhmmm…” Anne replied.

Richard shook his head. He knew she was only trying to help him, but this was going to be bloodbath. _I’m a dead man, he thought, with both my brother and her father     c_ _oming …_

Before he could reply, his doorbell rang. It had to be her father, as both his brother and best friend would just knock and come right in.

He turned around to see Anne hugging her father. He took a deep breath and walked over to the door.

“Hello sir. I’m Richard York,” he said, extending his hand.

The older man smiled, and shook Richard’s hand. “Richard Neville. Nice to meet you. My daughter told me you’re in some sort of trouble,” Anne’s father replied.

Anne walked over and put her arms around Richard. Richard looked down at her and smiled.

“Daddy, please sit down. Richard and I will explain everything when Francis and Edmund get here,” Anne said.

Richard Neville regarded the pair after sitting down in the recliner. After he spoke with Anne, he called Isabel. His older daughter had been only too pleased to tell him what she knew about this situation. When he learned Anne’s professor’s name, he did some quick research on him. By all accounts, he was highly intelligent and a good man. But he was a young man, nonetheless, who couldn’t control his emotions any more than his daughter.

 _They DO seem to be in love_ , the older Neville thought. _And Anne is too smart to risk everything for a passing infatuation._

After a few more moments of reflective yet awkward silence, there was a knock on the door, and Francis was standing in the doorway, with Edmund.

Richard just stood there looking at Edmund, and Francis didn’t really seem sure of what to do either. So Anne made the first move.

“You must be Edmund,” Anne said, extending her hand. “I’m Anne, and this is my father, Richard Neville.”

Edmund shook her hand silently, and gave her a quick once over. He then looked at his brother, who seemed very on edge. After he shook Richard Neville’s hand, he said, “So, you got caught, huh? Told you so…”

Richard sighed, and tried to remain calm. But before he could reply, Anne’s father interrupted.

“If I may, why don’t we all sit down, and listen to the whole story. And then, Anne, you can inform us all as to the other reason why we’re here,” the older Neville stated.

It was actually Anne that told most of the story. Richard felt badly, because it was, in his mind, all his fault. He should’ve been the one to tell everyone. He was just relieved that his brother remained silent while Anne was talking.

When she finished, she looked at Richard and smiled. She took his hand, and said, rather clearly, “I know that you don’t really approve, and that you also don’t really understand. But we DO love each other, and we’re BOTH at fault, contrary to what Richard thinks.”

Richard sighed and smiled at her. He kissed the top of her head, and then proceeded to inform the others of their fates. Francis and Edmund were both shocked, but the older Neville remained calm, as he already knew this.

Anne then told them all about her meeting with the dean. Richard was now equally stunned.

Anne’s father finally spoke. “So you want to pursue legal action against this Professor Stanley. Based upon what your dean mentioned, and this evidence, you have a very compelling case. And given what you’ve told me about his personality, we should fare well.”

Edmund stood up and started walking around the room. “Do you really think it’s worth the effort? And what if they don’t win?” he said, not convinced of this plan.

Francis finally spoke. “I know I’m only a law student, but Anne’s plan has merit. And if Stanley is portrayed badly and loses a civil case, the university would have to take action against him, too, which could possibly lead to a reversal of Richard’s fate.”

Richard Neville smiled at Francis. “When this is all finished, Francis, you must come see me at my firm. We should discuss your future,” he said warmly.

Francis looked at Anne’s father and returned his smile. “Thank you, sir. I would appreciate that, regardless of the outcome,” Francis said appreciatively.

Edmund returned to his seat, and sighed. “You know,” Edmund started, looking at his brother, “I had expected to come here, and yell at you for getting yourself into this mess, and then making it worse. But I can’t.”

He then focused on Anne. “I’m impressed at how mature you are, and by how you’re taking an equal responsibility for what happened. And it took guts to bring your father in on this,” Edmund continued.

Anne was so touched that after she smiled lovingly at Richard, she got up and hugged Edmund. “Thank you. I know that couldn’t have been easy for you,” she said.

Edmund laughed, saying, “My little brother can be quite a handful sometimes, but I do love him. I only want what’s best, and for him to finally be happy.”

Richard stood up and joined Anne. “I am happy … with Anne. And even if her plan doesn’t succeed, we’ll figure something out. It’ll be ok,” he said, looking down at her, and kissing her forehead.

Richard Neville then stood up. “Well, then … I now have all the facts, and the evidence. I can leave now. Richard, it was nice to finally meet you. Gentleman, you as well.”

Anne went over and hugged her father.

“Thank you so much,” she whispered.

The older Neville smiled down at his daughter. _My girl is ok. Richard loves her, of that I’m sure. They’ll make it work_ , he thought.

“You’re welcome. I’ll be in touch. I love you.”

“I love you too Daddy,” Anne said as her father left.

Anne then turned to see Richard and Edmund hugging each other.

She looked at Francis and smiled. Francis nodded and walked over to her, and put his hand on her shoulder.

“Good job,” he whispered in her ear. She looked up at Richard’s best friend, still smiling. “Thank you,” she said quietly.

The brothers separated, and Edmund turned to face Anne. “I am sorry,” Edmund said. “I didn’t believe what you have with my little brother was truly real. But when I saw the two of you tonight, I couldn’t deny it.”

She walked over to Edmund and hugged him again. “It’s ok. I know you were only trying to protect him.”

Anne then went back into Richard’s waiting arms. Richard smiled, and said, “Thanks. I appreciate you saying that. And Francis, thank you as well.”

“What are best friends for?” Francis replied, as he and Edmund walked toward the door. “I’ll call you tomorrow. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight, and thanks again,” Richard said as they left.

He felt Anne’s grip around his waist tighten. He smiled, relieved.

He looked down at her and said, “I cannot thank you enough for what you’ve done. I feel like so relieved, now that your dad knows and didn’t kill me, and that Edmund met you, and seems to be ok with us.”

Anne stood on her toes and kissed him sweetly. “My dad’s not that scary. And I had a feeling that if Edmund saw us, and saw that my dad was ok with it, that maybe he’d start to come around.”

Richard kissed her more passionately, and said, “You never cease to amaze me. It’s part of why I love you so much.”

She pulled away from, leading him to the bedroom. “I think we deserve a good night’s sleep … eventually!”

Richard could only smile as she pulled him down on the bed. “I love you Richard, no matter what happens,” Anne said.

“I love you too, Anne.”


	23. Epilogue

Anne was becoming more nervous by the minute. Richard was late. She opened her phone and reread the text he sent her …

_The verdict is in. I’ll be home in ½ hour. I’ll tell you then. I love you._

She looked at the clock again. He was almost 20 minutes late. _Oh Richard, she thought, where are you??_

While Anne was pacing in the living room, Richard was slowly driving back home. He couldn’t wait to tell her the news. He was beyond excited. He glanced over to the passenger seat, smiling at the items piled there. _Oh Anne! It’s finally over! We can celebrate now,_ Richard thought happily.

Anne couldn’t take it anymore. She walked into the hallway and grabbed her coat and purse.

She was just reaching for the doorknob when she heard keys jangling outside. She quickly threw off her coat and ran back into the living room.

She turned around to see Richard, grinning from ear to ear, holding a huge bouquet of white tulips.

“Richard!” Anne cried. “Where have you been? I was so worried!”

Richard just kept smiling at her. _So beautiful, even when she’s upset,_ he thought.

“Richard? Is everything ok?” Anne asked, somewhat confused by his silence.

He walked over to her, and said, “These, my love, are for you.” Richard leaned down and kissed Anne.

“Oh, Richard, they’re gorgeous,” Anne sighed. She knew, now, that it was good news.

As she pulled away from his kiss, she looked up at him, hopefully. “Well …”

Richard smiled, and went into the hallway. He returned with a large manila envelope. He handed it Anne.

Anne slowly took the envelope, and looked at Richard. He nodded.

She opened it, pulled out the paper, and screamed.

“Read it,” Richard said, smiling even wider.

_It is the distinct pleasure of this committee to confer the Doctorate of Philosophy in Medieval History to Richard York._

“You did it!” Anne squealed with delight. “Dr. Richard York … I am so proud of you!”

Richard took the papers from her hands, set them on the coffee table, and embraced her passionately. “I couldn’t have done this without you,” he said in between kisses.

“Yes, you could have. It just took you longer because of me,” Anne said.

Richard looked at her, shaking his head. “I don’t ever want you to think that. I do NOT regret anything that’s happened. Besides, it worked out even better, don’t you think?”

Anne sighed as she hugged him tightly.

 _He’s right,_ Anne thought. _I was able to graduate on time, and he won his civil case. Professor Stanley got fired, and the dean helped us immensely. We both got accepted to graduate school here in England, and now, he has his doctorate._

“Anne?” Richard asked softly, waking her from her thoughts.

She looked up at him lovingly, and said, “I was just thinking how right you are … Dr. York.”

She giggled, and Richard knew this was the perfect moment. He kissed her on the forehead, and smiled.

He walked into the hallway and returned with another manila envelope. Richard handed it to her, and smiled.

“What’s this?” Anne asked curiously.

“Open it,” Richard said gently.

He watched as Anne slowly removed the parchment from the envelope. His smile widened as he watched her reaction.

“Oh my God … Richard …” Anne said, tears forming in her eyes. She looked down at the calligraphy on the parchment …

_I, Richard York, formally request the honour and privilege of your hand in marriage, to share my life with you, and all the love that I possess. I pledge my loyalty and fidelity to you, now and always. And I vow to make you as happy as you make me._

Anne gasped, as she saw her beloved Richard on one knee, holding a black velvet box in his hands. She was no longer able to control her tears, and quickly laid the beautiful proposal on the chair.

She simply smiled at Richard and whispered, “Yes.”

He leapt up, wrapping his arms around her.

Richard gently pulled away and opened the box. Anne’s hand flew to her mouth as her eyes gazed upon the beautiful sapphire solitaire surrounded by diamonds.

“Oh Richard! It’s breathtaking!” Anne said through her tears.

“May I?” Richard asked, taking the sparkling ring from its box.

Anne was so overwhelmed; all she could do was nod. A shiver ran down her spine as Richard slipped the ring on her finger.

Richard leaned down and kissed her.

She sighed, smiling, and said, “I love you so very much Richard.”

“I love you, Anne, always and forever.”

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading!


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